


Special Studies-- Mineralogy and Matchmaking (2 credits)

by lukesandleias



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Drinking, Established Relationship, M/M, Mild Language
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-05
Updated: 2016-01-24
Packaged: 2018-05-12 00:18:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 22,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5647063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lukesandleias/pseuds/lukesandleias
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Due to the absence of Professor Luke Skywalker (Geology), Professor Han Solo (Business Management) sees no hope for his romantic satisfaction. Finn Taylor (freshman, Engineering), Poe Dameron (junior, Aviation), and Rey Johnson (sophomore, Geology) have other plans for their favorite 'Personal Finance' professor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Thursday, December 6th, 1345, 6:15 PM

**Author's Note:**

> TRIGGER WARNING:   
> mild language (throughout)  
> drinking/drunkenness (Ch. 9).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Professor Solo has a big decision to make.

The sun was setting over Jakku after a brisk day in early December. Professor Han Solo was looking out his window and out onto the main Quad; he saw students entering and exiting the library, rushing about and looking stressed out as the finals period approached. However, Professor Solo, like many of the students outside his window, was not really focused on the impending doom that was finals period at Resistance College. 

Professor Solo had been working in the Business Management department at Resistance College for thirty years. His main focuses were finance and entrepreneurship. For many of his years at the college, Professor Solo had felt passionate about helping students. He liked to see his pupils walk away from a class or a workshop feeling confident. For some students, it was simply having the ability to balance a checkbook, or knowing what a mortgage was. For others, it was having a set of skills that would lead them to open their own business. As long as the students accomplished whatever they were seeking by taking one of his classes or attending one of his seminars, Professor Solo was happy.

Lately, though, Professor Solo was not feeling so satisfied. There was something missing from his life at Resistance College, and for a while he had refused to put a finger on exactly what (or who) that was. For a while he had suspected that it was a returning longing for his ex-wife. In his twelfth year at Resistance College, Professor Solo divorced his wife Leia Organa, an elementary school teacher in the town over from the college. She was a lovely woman, but something about her just did not sit right with Professor Solo. He found himself constantly thinking she was falling short, and eventually he decided that it was better to let her go now than to seriously hurt her later. Leia had been crushed by the divorce, and she later moved off of Jakku and got a teaching job on another planet.

Professor Solo soon realized that the empty feeling in his gut was not due to the absence of his ex-wife. Ever since the divorce, something in Professor Solo had changed, and new things had surfaced. He felt his emotions reeling around and changing focus, and they eventually landed on a new target about three years after the divorce.

That chilly December day in his office, Professor Solo found himself once again thinking about the absence of Professor Luke Skywalker, a colleague and special friend that he had found during his more recent years at the college. Professor Skywalker had been a professor of Geology at Resistance College even before Professor Solo had begun his work there. He had specialized in Mineralogy, and he had loved looking at crystals and going into the field to find new specimens. But Professor Skywalker had been absent from Resistance College for almost ten years. What started as a one-year sabbatical turned into a full blown geological exploration, and Professor Skywalker eventually declared an emeritus status so he could be away from the college for an extended period of the time to finish the dig.

Professor Skywalker was who Professor Solo felt was his missing piece. After his divorce from Leia, Professor Skywalker had been a really good friend and resource to Professor Solo. If Professor Solo was feeling sad one day, Professor Skywalker would invite him to his office for a chat and some coffee. If Professor Solo was overwhelmed by the classes he was teaching or the seminars he had planned, Professor Skywalker would offer him a game of chess as a “study break.” Professor Solo and Professor Skywalker were overall just a really good match, and Professor Solo began to read their relationship as more than a friendship. He couldn’t help but notice that Professor Skywalker’s behavior had evolved over time too.

To make a long story short, Professor Solo had developed serious feelings for Professor Skywalker. Ever since he left, Professor Solo had found fewer and fewer benefits to staying at Resistance College. Unfortunately, in his mind the pain of missing Professor Skywalker was no longer worth the reward of seeing his students happy.

Professor Solo had been considering the possibility of retirement for the entirety of the semester, but now that it was almost over the reality of actually deciding was a little too, well, real. In that moment, with Resistance College about to plunge headfirst into the Fall 1345 finals period, Professor Solo decided on a tentative “yes.” He would retire at the end of the school year. Even if he would no longer be able to see the satisfied look on his students’ faces, at least he would be able to escape the pain of being separated from Professor Skywalker.


	2. Friday, December 7th, 1345, 11:00 AM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finn and Poe celebrate a special day.

“Wake up, buddy!” Poe exclaimed as he began to hit Finn over the head with a pillow. Finn looked at the clock. It was 11:00 AM.

“Ugh,” Finn groaned. He hated waking up before noon on any given Friday, because it was the only day that he didn’t have any classes. But here Poe was, attempting to rouse him by repeatedly smacking him with his own pillow. In that moment, Finn almost regretted leaving his door unlocked while he slept.

After a few more minutes of beating, Finn was able to lift himself out of his bed. The second he did so, Poe wrapped his arms around him in a bear hug. Then he gave Finn a passionate kiss on the mouth.

“Happy three months!” Poe said as their lips separated.

Finn tried not to look caught off guard.  _ Shit _ , he thought.  _ I almost forgot about our anniversary _ . The way he had been so suddenly ripped from his slumber must have made Finn momentarily forget about the occasion. Luckily, he had picked out a gift a week ago, so he wasn’t going to begin the day empty-handed. He reached under his bed and dragged out a gift bag.

“Happy ‘monthiversary,’ babe,” Finn said with a smile as he handed Poe the package.

“You really didn’t have to get me anything,” Poe said as he began to separate the tissue paper. He was blushing ever so slightly.

“Of course I did,” Finn said nonchalantly. He was trying to be smooth, even though everything about Poe made his insides feel fuzzy. Holding Poe’s hand made his head spin, and kissing him? Forget it. He may as well have melted every time their lips touched.

Poe finally managed to pull the gift out of the bag. It was a brand new Aviator jacket. Poe stood up and held the jacket up against himself. After a moment, he looked up at Finn.

“It’s… beautiful,” Poe breathed.

“I was hoping you’d like it,” Finn said with a smirk. “I’ve been holding your old one hostage for so long. I keep meaning to give it back, and truth be told I spilled some coffee all over it the other day, so it’s at the dry cleaner’s right now, but--”

“No,” Poe said. He looked down at the jacket and back up at Finn. “Keep it. It suits you.”

Finn’s insides did a hundred backflips.

“Sit down,” Poe said as he replaced the jacket in the gift bag. Finn propped himself up against the headboard of his bed, and pulled the covers up over his legs. Poe finished repackaging his new coat, and then climbed into bed next to Finn. 

Poe put one arm around Finn while he reached into his pocket with his free hand. “I’m just warning you,” Poe said, “you seriously outdid me with the present this time. I promise that I’ll make it up to you at Christmas.” He handed Finn an envelope. “Here,” Poe said. “Open it.”

Finn carefully ripped open the envelope, unsure of its contents. Inside was a single sheet of envelope-sized paper. After quick examination, he determined it was one of those dorky handmade coupons that couples made for each other. But there was something different about this one:

_ Good for one trip to Yavin 4 _

_ December 21st 1345 - January 5th 1346 _

_ Christmas at the Dameron residence _

Finn looked up at Poe, almost shocked at what he had just read. The expression on his face must have given away his feelings of apprehension. 

Poe smiled and kissed Finn on the cheek. “It’s okay, buddy,” he said sweetly. “I really want you to meet my folks. They’ve heard all this stuff about you, and they want to meet you too. Plus, I know that you’re not really close with your family, and that holidays are tough for you. I want you to be someplace where you feel welcome.”

There was a moment of silence. “Will you do it?” Poe asked, eagerly awaiting an answer.

Truth be told, Finn really had no idea what he was being asked, or if it was even appropriate. He was scared to say no, but the results of saying yes were potentially catastrophic. Finn could feel his anxiety beginning to kick in, and his breaths were becoming shorter and shorter. Finn did the natural thing to do in this situation, and that was quickly think about the entirety of their relationship in order to decide if this was an okay thing to do.

Finn and Poe had met in one of their classes at the beginning of the semester, ‘Personal Finance and Intro to Entrepreneurship.’ It was taught by Professor Han Solo, and it was a general education requirement that all students enrolled at Resistance College needed to graduate. Finn was a natural in the classroom, and Poe simply was not. One day, Poe asked Finn to help him study for an upcoming exam. Finn remembered that first study session like it was yesterday...

_ “Finn, I have no idea how these credit card things even work. I must have been either absent or asleep when Solo lectured on this stuff. APR, interest, late fees… I kinda know what they all are, but not how they relate or why they’re relevant, you know?” _

_ “I getcha,” Finn said, but he couldn’t get himself to look down at his notes. He was too focused on the way Poe’s body curved near his hips, or how his eyes sparkled as the cafe light hit them the right way. He finally was able to pry his eyes from the man sitting across from him to look at his notebook.  _

_ “Well,” Finn said. “APR is a kind of interest. It’s the amount of interest that gets added onto the amount you’ve charged to your card at the end of each year. And you have to pay it off or, ya know, the credit card company gets mad at you.” _

_ “But what happens to you when the credit card companies ‘get mad’ at you? I just don’t--” Poe stopped, frustrated. “You know what? Let’s take a break. Let me buy you a coffee.” _

_ Finn was too afraid to tell Poe that he was allergic to coffee, and that he preferred herbal teas, but Poe was already at the counter before he mustered the courage to open his mouth. _

_ Poe came back to the table with two medium coffees, and Finn pretended to take a sip. “Mmm,” he said, trying to look satisfied with his beverage. “Delicious.” _

_ Poe poured some half-and-half packets into his cup. “You like your coffee black?” he asked. Finn nodded. “You’re one brave dude, Finn. That shit is too bitter for me to drink by itself.” _

_ Finn’s stomach turned upside down. Poe, the best pilot in the aviation program at Resistance College, had called him brave. He was afraid of heights. _

_ Poe sat down after throwing away the empty half-and-half packets. “You know Finn,” he said. “I like a brave dude. And I like a smart dude. And you’re both of those things. What do you say we do this again sometime?” A suggestive half smiled curled onto his lips. _

_ Finn had to use every ounce of willpower in his body to keep from smiling like a huge idiot. “Yeah,” he said to Poe. “I’d like that.” _

After reviewing the events during his time with Poe, Finn came to a conclusion. 

“Yes,” Finn said, “I would love to come home with you for Christmas.”

Poe threw his arms around Finn. “This means the world to me, Finn,” he said. “I am so excited for you to meet my family, and for you to see Yavin 4. It’s winter there now too, but winter there is so much more beautiful than it is here on Jakku. I want you to experience that with me.”

Finn smiled sweetly at his boyfriend. “I would really, really like that.”

Finn looked at his nightstand, where the clock read 12:15. “Crap,” he said. “My meeting with Han is in forty-five minutes. I gotta get changed.”

“So go ahead,” Poe said suggestively. “It won’t be the first time I’ve seen you naked.” Before Finn had the chance to get up, Poe pulled himself on top of him. They started making out, and Poe started to take his shirt off.

“No,” Finn said. Of course he was enjoying himself, but he knew that he had to see Professor Solo once more before the finals period began. “I really gotta go to this meeting with Han. Afterwards…” he continued as he got out of bed, “I’m all yours.”

“Alright,” Poe sighed, defeated. “Man, you’re on a first name basis with Professor Solo now? He hates when people don’t address him formally.”

“I don’t know,” Finn said as he took off his sleep shirt and put on a salmon-colored button down. “He said I could. I guess he really does like me.”

“It’s hard to get on his good side, but I guess you really are now. That’s good, Finn. He’s super smart and a great resource.” Finn turned around to look at Poe as he finished buttoning his shirt. A genuine grin crept across Poe’s face. “I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks,” Finn said. He wasn’t really sure how he had become so close with Professor Solo, but he was really glad that he had. Finn had been doing really well in Professor Solo’s class, but he got nervous anyway when Professor Solo asked him to stay after class one day. Luckily, it was nothing bad; Professor Solo simply congratulated Finn on his achievements, and asked him if he was thinking of becoming a businessman. Finn told Professor Solo that he wasn’t interested, and that he was pursuing an Engineering major at the college. Their correspondence did not end after that conversation, though. Professor Solo continued to keep Finn after class, whether it be to ask him to help other students (like Poe, but that base was already covered), or to simply talk business.

Finn had begun to feel really comfortable around Professor Solo, so he decided to ask him to be his new Liberal Arts, or pre-major, Advisor. He and his current advisor, Professor Kylo Ren, simply did not see eye to eye. Professor Solo took Finn seriously, and saw him as more of an equal than a pupil. Professor Solo gladly obliged Finn’s request; he saw a lot of potential in Finn, and he genuinely liked having conversations with the boy.

Finn finished getting dressed, and he turned around once again to face Poe. “How do I look? Am I dressed professionally enough?”

Poe stood up and walked over to Finn. He wrapped his arms around him and gave him a peck on the lips. 

“You always look great,” Poe said. “With or without clothing. But there is one thing that would make this outfit complete.” Poe reached into Finn’s closet and pulled out his old Aviator jacket.

“I thought this was at the dry cleaner’s?” Poe asked in a suspicious but lighthearted tone.

“Uhh…” Finn said. His voice got quiet. “I just wanted to keep it.”

Poe let out a loud and hearty laugh. “Like I said, you can keep it.” He draped the coat over Finn’s shoulders. “C’mon. Let’s go downstairs to eat a quick lunch, and then you can go to your meeting.”

Finn kissed Poe one more time before they left his room. “Happy anniversary, Poe.”


	3. Friday, December 7th, 1345, 1:00 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finn has a talk with his favorite professor.

Finn knocked on the door to Professor Solo’s office, only to have it creak open as his fist made contact with the wood.

“Come in,” Professor Solo’s voice came from within.

Finn pushed open the door the rest of the way. Professor Solo was seated at his desk beside the window. Finn approached.

“How are you today, sir?” Finn asked. He stuck out his hand.

Professor Solo shook Finn’s outstretched hand. “Good, Finn. I’m good. And please, call me Han.”

“Alright, Han,” said Finn reluctantly. It still felt wrong to be calling a professor by his first name. Hopefully he would get used to it by his second year, because a lot of professors at the college liked to be addressed without their title.

Professor Solo walked away from his desk and toward the other side of the room. There was a couch, and armchair and a coffee table that were facing the window. Professor Solo sat down in the armchair, and he motioned for Finn to sit across from him on the couch. “Take a seat.”

Finn did as he was told. “How is the end of the semester going for you, Finn?” Han asked. “How many finals do you have?”

“Well,” Finn began, “I have the final project for your class. I have two sit-down finals, you know, for my engineering class and for my physics class. And then I have a final lab report due for chemistry. It’s not that bad, but I gotta get it all done.”

“You’ll manage,” Han said. He didn’t sound at all worried about Finn’s capability to get through the finals period; in fact, Finn actually thought that the professor seemed a bit distracted from the conversation. “What about your classes for next semester?”

“They’re all set, just like we talked about,” Finn explained. “I’m taking the next level engineering class, and calculus two, since you know I did the first level in high school. And then I’m taking the computer science class that’s required for my major, and I’m taking a history class with Professor Ackbar. That should be good, right?”

“Yes, that sounds wonderful,” Professor Solo affirmed. “Professor Ackbar is very intelligent and knows a lot about the history of the galaxy. You should learn a lot from him.” There was a pause. “Finn, have you thought about declaring your major yet?”

Finn was taken aback by Professor Solo’s question. “Han, I’m only just finishing my first semester of college. I don’t even know what sector of engineering I want to be in yet. I wouldn’t even know what to declare. Plus, I wouldn’t feel comfortable asking any of the engineering faculty to be my major advisor yet.”

There was a long silence. Then Professor Solo spoke quietly and reluctantly. “You should really think about declaring. I know that you know what you need to do as far as your requirements, but my nonexistent knowledge of the engineering department can only help you for so long.”

Finn thought that Professor Solo must have been joking. “I’m really fine, Han. I’m happy with where I’m at right now. You’re super helpful. I think I do know what I’m doing in terms of my requirements, but you help me with stuff that is so far beyond that. I really like having you as my advisor, and--”

“Finn!” Professor Solo rose his voice in a way that Finn had never heard before.“I need you to start thinking about these things. You should really declare by the end of this school year.” Han took a deep breath and continued. “Finn, I’m thinking about retiring at the end of the spring semester. I don’t want you to be stuck without an advisor when next fall comes around.”

Professor Solo’s words bounced around in Finn’s head as if they were a ping pong ball. He could only manage to say one thing, in his softest voice. “Sir, I had no idea.”

“There’s no way you could have known,” Han sighed. He stood up and walked towards to the window, and he looked out at the Quad. He turned his head back toward Finn. “I’ve been thinking about this for a while, but I only just made a tentative decision yesterday. Like I said, it’s tentative, but I think it’s time for me to move on, you know, see some more of the galaxy.” He stopped. There was another silence.

Professor Solo turned his head back toward the window. “Do you ever feel as if you’ve lost your touch Finn?” Pause. “Ah, what would you know of that? You’re still young yet.” Another pause. “Well, I feel as if I’ve lost mine. Or that I’ve lost something.” He turned his head away and said under his breath, “Or someone.”

Finn could only stare at the professor, more confused than anything else. “Sir.” Han turned his head back towards the boy. “I don’t like the idea of you leaving, of you not being here as a teacher, and--” He stuttered. “And as a friend. But I respect your decision. Everyone wants to go out and see the galaxy. Why would you, of all people, not? There is so much to learn out there.” Finn gazed out the window and towards the sky.

Professor Solo felt a tear come into his eye. The thought of leaving pupils like Finn, especially Finn, made him emotional. There was a reason he had stayed at Resistance College for so long already after Professor Skywalker left, and the hardworking, passionate students like Finn were it. Finn was right; there was so much more knowledge out in the galaxy to acquire, about business, about science, about history... and about himself. Han blinked the tear away, and walked back toward Finn.

“Thank you, Finn,” Professor Solo said as he rested a hand on Finn’s shoulder. “It really does mean a lot to me. I am going to miss all of my students--” he inhaled sharply. “Especially you. You have so much potential, and so much good in you. I have no doubt that you’ll succeed in whatever you decide to pursue in the end.” Han paused once more, and tried to snap back into the version of himself that he was before their conversation started. He began to walk back towards his desk. “Send me an email when you’re done with your finals, you know, once you get home. I want to know how everything went.”

Finn was still in shock from everything that he had just been told. “Uhh…” he tried to find the words to tell Professor Solo about his plans for Christmas. “Actually, I’m not going home for winter break. I’m going with Poe Dameron back to Yavin 4. I’m… going to spend the holidays there.”

Professor Solo settled back into his desk chair, and a grin spread across his face. Finn had never actually told his advisor about his relationship with the third-year Aviation student, but Han had been suspicious ever since Finn announced that he was already tutoring Poe for the class. “That sounds wonderful,” Han said as he put on his glasses and looked down at some papers on his desk. “You know it’s beautiful there at this time of year.”

“So I’ve heard,” Finn said just loudly enough for the professor to hear him. Han let out a chuckle, and Finn blushed. He started to head for the door.

“Good luck with finals, Finn,” Professor Solo said without looking up from his desk. “And have a good holiday.”

“You too, Han,” Finn replied as he exited the office.

 

***

 

Finn waited until he was out of the building to dial his cell phone. It rang three times before a female voice became audible.

“Hi Finn. What’s up?”

“Hey Rey,” Finn said quickly. “What are you doing tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow?” Finn could hear Rey shuffling through papers through the receiver. He knew that she was looking through her planner. “I have something from ten to eleven, but after that I’m free. Why?”

“Great,” Finn said. “Let’s meet for lunch tomorrow. You, me, and Poe. How does twelve sound?”

“Twelve. That’s fine,” Rey said. She sounded more confused than anything. “Say, are you okay? You sound like someone just told you that your Wookie died.”

“I gotta tell you something, that’s all,” Finn replied. “I’ll see you tomorrow at twelve.” He hung up the phone and headed back towards his dorm.


	4. Saturday, December 8th, 1345, 12:00 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What's with the team meeting?"

Rey walked into the campus center cafe right at noon. She was never late, but she was never early either. Rey made it a point to be perfectly punctual. It was the professional thing to do.

She saw Poe and Finn already seated at a table; Finn had his back to her, and Poe was facing her. They were holding hands across the table, but Poe looked disconcerted. Rey rolled her eyes anyway. The couple was always so touchy-feely, and she honestly thought that they were so cute that they were gross, and so gross that they were cute again.

When she made it over to where Finn and Poe were sitting, she took the seat next to Finn. She always felt more comfortable with Finn than she did with Poe, but that wasn’t really Poe’s fault. He was a big name on campus; after all, he was the best pilot that the college’s aviation program had seen in a very long time. In person, Poe didn’t really play that role. He was a nice guy overall. But Finn… he was the first guy that had ever really been nice to Rey, or showed that he really cared.

Finn and Rey had met during a chance encounter earlier that semester. Rey was walking to one of her classes, just like she normally did, when out of nowhere this guy basically ran right into her. Finn always claimed that he was merely power walking, but he did admit to having his head down; he was always nervous that he would trip over his own feet if he wasn’t looking at them. Anyway, their collision caused Rey to drop her books as well as some specimens she had been carrying to the Geology lab. Finn helped her pick them up, apologized profusely, and offered to carry everything to her class. Rey accepted, they got to talking, and the rest was history.

“Hey guys,” Rey said to the couple. “What’s up? What’s with the team meeting?”

“What, we can’t all just eat lunch together sometimes?” Poe said sarcastically.

Finn rolled his eyes, but he had a smile on his face while he did so. The smile quickly faded. “Well, I did wanna have lunch with you guys one more time before the semester ended. But I also have some bad news.”

Poe looked down at the table. He was always a big joker, and Rey knew that the news had to be pretty bad to make him regret making a wisecrack. She looked at Finn, concerned.

“What is it? Is there something wrong?” Her eyes moved from Finn to Poe, who was still looking down at the table. “Is everything okay with you two?”

Poe looked up. “Everything is fine between us,” Finn said. “We’re not the problem.” He took a pause. “Actually, it’s Han Solo.”

“Your business professor? And your advisor, Finn? What’s wrong with him? I thought you were doing really well in his class.”

“We are,” said Poe. “Well, I am now, thanks to Finn. Finn was always doing pretty good.”

“Yeah, that’s not the problem either.” Finn took a breath. “Han told me yesterday that he’s thinking of retiring at the end of next semester.”

Rey was obviously missing something. “Okay? He’s old. He probably wants to retire and travel and play golf, and do all those other things that retired people do.”

Finn sighed. “That might be true, but I don’t think he actually WANTS to retire. It’s not like he’s, like, sick of his job or something. He said that he’s ‘going to miss all of his students.’ I don’t know. I just feel like there’s something else behind this. I want to ask him if he’s okay, but… I don’t know how to go about it.”

“Well, did he say anything else?” Rey asked. She was really good at reading into what people say and do, so she wanted to know more about the ‘something else’ that Finn was talking about.

Finn paused to think. “He did say something else, actually. He said that he felt as if he ‘lost his touch.’ And then he kinda made it more general, and he said that he felt that he had ‘lost something.’ Then he muttered some stuff under his breath, I couldn’t make it out though.”

“Interesting,” Rey said as she began to process the information. She agreed with Finn that Professor Solo definitely wasn’t burnt out. He may have been old, but he still had so much knowledge left to spread, and he certainly still had the energy to spread it. There must have been something else drawing him away from Resistance College… or pushing him out. Rey didn’t know much of the college gossip; she was only a sophomore, and she really didn’t get out much during her first year. “Poe, do you know anything about Professor Solo, like, his social life or anything? It sounds like there’s something either pulling or pushing him away from the college.”

“Not really,” Poe said. “I just know that he got divorced something like fifteen years ago. He used to be married to some teacher that works at a nearby elementary school. He felt kinda bad about it though, and he started making friends with some of his colleagues to fill the gap.”

“You’re right,” Finn chimed in. “I’ve heard him talk about this Geology professor a few times. But he talked about him like they’re not friends anymore, and he never mentioned his name. It’s like he’s afraid to talk about him or something. Rey, you’re a Geology major. Do you know any of those professors that were friends with Han?”

The answer suddenly dawned on Rey. She knew exactly who Finn was talking about. “It’s not that they’re not friends anymore, per se. It’s that this particular Geology professor hasn’t been on campus in almost ten years.” She took a pause, leaned in closer to Finn and Poe, and started smiling. “His name was Professor Luke Skywalker. He specialized in Mineralogy in the department, and he honestly is like a myth. Most of the active professors in the department talk about him like he’s dead or something, and I wasn’t really sure for awhile if he was like real or ever actually worked here. But he is real. He’s just a professor emeritus now, because he’s been working on a dig site on another planet for the entire time that he’s been gone from the college. And that’s where he’s been for the last ten years.”

“But why does this matter?” Poe asked, letting go of Finn’s hand. “If they were just buddies, and he’s been gone this whole time, why retire now? If he was so pissed at the guy when he left, then why didn’t Solo just leave ten years ago?”

Finn was getting frustrated. He idolized Professor Solo in a way that Poe and Rey simply did not understand. “Well, there was still plenty of stuff keeping him here. He really cares about his students, and he had been here for twenty years already at that point. There was a lot that he could get from the college, as well as give to it.” Finn sighed. “But you are right. If he was mad enough, he would have just up and left. He’s the kinda guy that would do that to make a point.”

The trio looked around, puzzled. “I don’t know,” Poe finally said. “Maybe he’s a little gay for his Skywalker guy.”

They all chuckled, but Finn stopped suddenly as if realizing something. Poe was not far behind, and a similar expression crept onto his face. Rey was the last one to stop laughing, but she stopped mostly because she didn’t want to look ignorant in front of her friends.

“I just realized what Han said under his breath,” Finn whispered excitedly. “The thing that he said he had lost? It wasn’t a ‘thing’ at all! When he turned away from me and whispered to himself, he said he was missing ‘someone.’ Not something, someone. What if… What if he actually does have the hots for this Skywalker dude?”

“I mean, he hasn’t remarried since he and his ex-wife got divorced…” Poe added. “Maybe it’s because he’s like, in the closet or something?”

Rey cringed at Poe’s use of the phrase ‘in the closet.’ She hadn’t told anyone, but Rey was pretty sure that she was gay. She had never really been interested in guys, especially since she’d been at Resistance College. Walking around campus each day, she found herself ogling at almost every cute girl that passed her by. Rey was afraid that those feelings may have just been due to the fact that she had never had any luck with men, but that in itself had to speak to something… right?

“It’s perfectly possible,” Finn said. “I remember being at that point in my life, and it felt a lot like what Han seems to be feeling himself. I was afraid, unsure, and honestly I just wanted to run from my problems. Han basically said to my face that he was feeling all of those things.”

“Alright,” Rey said, trying to change the subject. “Whether Professor Solo is gay or not, I think it’s clear that Luke Skywalker is the reason that he wants to retire. It’s either he works with Skywalker or he doesn’t work at all. So if you want Solo to stay here, we have to get Professor Skywalker to come back to Resistance.” She paused for a moment, thinking. “But do you really want to disrupt Professor Solo’s life like that? He’s probably making plans for his retirement as we speak.”

Finn contemplated Rey’s words for a minute, but remained unmoved. “I wouldn’t be worried about this if I didn’t think it wasn’t in Han’s best interest. He should really stay here. It would benefit him, and it would benefit the college.”  _ And it would benefit me _ , he thought.

“Okay,” said Poe. “So we know what we have to do. How exactly are we supposed to do it?”

The trio sat around, thinking. They all seemed to be drawing blanks.

Even though she had the least at stake in this situation, Rey spoke first. “I have an idea,” she claimed, “but it might be a little complicated. And it’s gonna require some signatures.”


	5. Tuesday, December 11th, 1345, 2:45 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey learns some new (and troublesome) information.

Rey entered the office of her advisor, Professor Maz Kanata, without knocking. She was unaccustomed to being so impolite, but the Geology department was pretty lax at Resistance College. Professor Kanata, who preferred to be addressed simply as ‘Maz,’ was the most extreme example of the Geology department’s collective mannerisms. She refused to answer students who would knock on her door; she would only talk to those bold enough to walk right in. She claimed that “those who truly wish to fulfill their wants and needs will take the necessary steps to do so.” Maz was very philosophical.

Maz and Rey were a good match because Rey was very passionate about her studies, and she was willing to make a lot of bold moves to further herself. Maz saw a lot of potential in Rey, both as a geologist and as a person. She was willing to ask questions about the crystals that filled Maz’s office, about the inner workings of the college, and about the galaxy. Maz was always willing to answer questions from her most curious pupil, because after all, “the path knowledge is also the path to greatness.”

“Ah, young Rey Johnson,” Maz said as Rey entered the room. She rose from her desk chair. “What can I do for you today?”

Rey slid a piece of paper across the desk. “I need you to sign this.”

Maz analyzed the piece of paper for about a minute. She didn’t speak a word. Rey was growing impatient, so she crossed her shoulders and began tapping her foot. Maz was not getting the message, so Rey finally said, “Well?”

There were about fifteen more seconds of silence before Maz looked up. “You come asking me to sign this. I admire your devotion and your ambition. But you are forgetting the most important thing: patience. You will need quite a bit of patience to get where you need to go.”

Rey rolled her eyes. She often grew impatient with Maz because she wanted Rey to understand every possible consequence of her actions before she went through with anything. Rey had to admit that Maz’s wisdom had never steered her wrong, and the long talking-to’s always benefitted her in the end. Rey took a breath and uncrossed her arms. She took a seat in one of the chairs facing Maz’s desk.

“Alright,” Rey said. “I’m going to need patience. But will you sign the form?”

“Yes, I will sign it,” Maz replied. “But first, we must discuss it.”

Ugh. “Okay.” What was originally a two-minute meeting in Rey’s mind turned into a thirty-minute meeting.

“This form is a request to enroll in special studies for the upcoming semester?” Maz asked. She always liked to make sure that her pupils understood what exactly they were signing up for before she approved anything.

“Yes,” Rey said. “A two-credit special studies.”

“You understand that your proposal is going to need approval from the necessary parties?”

“Yep.”

“And you understand that the necessary parties include myself, the chairperson of the Geology department, the Dean of Institutional Research, and the Dean of the College?”

Rey gulped. “Uh. No. I didn’t know that. I thought that I just needed your signature and the signature of the professor that I want to do the special studies with.”

“Normally, that would be the case,” Maz said. “But since the person you wish to assist is technically a professor emeritus, you need approval from the Geology department chairperson and the Dean of the College instead. And since the research that you wish to do is off campus, in fact on another planet, you need to get approval from the Dean of Institutional Research. That is why there are so many lines to be filled on this form.”

Rey hadn’t really paid close attention to the form. She figured that she just needed to get the first half of the form filled out, which only had two lines to fill besides the one for her own signature. She hadn’t bothered to read the part about off-campus research, or about conducting research with people other than full-time employees of Resistance College. But now that the information was coming out of Maz’s mouth, everything made a lot of sense.

 _Crap_ , Rey thought. “Okay,” she said. “I can get those signatures.”

“You can, but it may not prove as easy as you might expect,” Maz warned. “In order to speak with the Dean of Institutional Research and the Dean of the College, you need to make appointments with their offices. And you’ll need to do that tomorrow,” Maz said as she pointed at the clock. It read 3:02 PM. “Because those offices close at three. Additionally, you need to see the chairperson for the Geology department. That will not prove as difficult. Just send him an email stating that you need to come in. But do not forget to include your reasons for needing to see him. You know that Professor Greedo is very particular.” Maz finally grabbed a pen from the jar that was sitting on her desk and signed the form. She handed it back to Rey.

“Thank you, Maz.” Rey was truly grateful. “I would not have known what to do without your guidance.”

“Of course, Rey,” Maz said as she sat back down at her desk. “I am here to advise you.”

Rey bowed to her advisor before she exited the office. As she began to walk away from the desk, Maz called out to her.

“Do not forget, Rey,” Maz said firmly, “That form is due before the end of the finals period.”

Rey swallowed. She felt herself becoming more apprehensive the longer she stayed in Maz’s office. She turned her head back towards her advisor. “I will not forget.”

 

***

 

Rey had begun to sweat nervously as she walked away from Professor Kanata’s office. She saw a table in the hallway up ahead, so she stopped and removed her knapsack from her shoulders. She took out her planner and wrote down everything that she needed to do before the end of the day tomorrow:

_-email Professor Greedo_

_-make appointment with Dean of the College_

_-make appointment with Dean of Research_

_…_

Additionally, she wrote some notes about upcoming assignments, exams, and other due dates. Then she flipped forward a couple pages. She had previously written in some important dates:

_Thurs. December 13: reading period starts_

_Mon. December 17: finals start_

_Thurs. December 20: finals end_

_Fri. December 21: dorms & college close _

When she finished, she put away her planner, put her knapsack back on, and walked out of the Geology building. She had begun to wonder if her plan would work at all. Could she schedule and attend all the necessary meetings before the end of the day next Thursday?


	6. Wednesday, December 19th, 1345, 1:00 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey completes the first part of her mission.

“Yes, Finn. I’m about to go into the last meeting. No, I couldn’t have scheduled it any earlier. Everyone and their mother wants to go to the Dean’s office during finals period to make sure they’re not going to flunk out of Resistance.” Rey was sitting in the waiting room at the office of the Dean of the College. Sitting nearby were a student and her mother, who were also waiting to talk to the Dean. They gave her a dirty look. “Oh. Sorry. Figure of speech,” Rey muttered to them.

Rey stood up and walked away from the sitting area a little bit. “Finn. Please let me get off the phone. They’re going to call me in any second. I promise that right after the meeting I’m literally going to RUN over to the registrar and hand in the form.”

A woman came through the doorway that led into the office. “Rey Johnson?” she asked to the crowd sitting in the waiting room. 

“That’s me,” Rey said, looking up at the woman. “Goodbye, Finn.” she said impatiently into the phone. She ended the call and walked into the Dean’s office.

 

***

 

Finn was sitting at his desk in his dorm room, wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts and socks. Poe was lying under the covers on Finn’s bed. It was unclear what he was wearing (if anything). 

“You’re cutting it awfully close, Rey,” Finn said into the phone. “Are you sure you couldn’t have made the appointment for earlier in the week?”

“You know that there’s a million people wanting to see the Dean at this point in the semester,” Poe said from the bed. “Cut her some slack. You know she’s going to get it done.”

Finn glared at his boyfriend. “Alright, alright,” Finn said. “Just text me when you’re done with the meeting.”

Finn could faintly hear another voice from over the phone. Suddenly, Rey said “Goodbye Finn” and hung up the phone.

“Ugh! She hung up on me!” Finn exclaimed, looking at his phone.

“She probably had to go to the meeting,” Poe said. “It’s fine, Finn. This is the last signature she needs, and that’s it. Everything will be in place.”

Finn didn’t reply. He knew that Poe was right, but he was still stressed about everything. 

“Come here,” Poe said, patting the vacant space beside him. Finn climbed into the bed, and snuggled up against Poe. Poe gave him a kiss on the top of the head.

“I’m glad you’re done with finals,” Poe said to his partner. “At least you’re not stressing about this and all your exams all at once.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Finn replied. “But you’re not one to talk. You only had one exam and the project for Han’s class, which we worked on together. And I bet you passed that flight exam with no problem.”

Poe looked around nervously. “Well, I did, I guess,” he said quickly. “But you just finished your first semester of college! That’s a big deal! Finals period here is routine for me at this point. You got through your first finals period with finesse. And I’m proud of you for it. You really shouldn’t be stressed.”

Finn smiled. “Thanks babe,” he said. Poe always knew what to say. “But I am stressed. I don’t wanna make Rey do all this work, right now and next semester, for nothing. What if this doesn’t even work? She’ll have wasted so much time and effort.”

Poe sat up a little bit. “Think of it like this. Rey is going to have a great experience with her special studies either way. She’s going to learn so much out in the field, and she’s going to have a lot of fun looking at all the specimens that are out at that dig site. It’s like she’s doing an internship AND getting college credit for it. It’s a pretty good deal. She’ll be grateful to have done it no matter what happens.”

“I hope so,” Finn said. He was still worried. “She’s just doing so much work now, running around and getting all these signatures and everything. I just really hope it’s worth it for her.”

 

***

 

“So,” Dean Obi-Wan Kenobi said, “You want to do a special studies next semester with Professor Emeritus Luke Skywalker?”

Rey was sitting across the table from the Dean. “Yes,” she said. “I am very interested in the types of minerals that he is uncovering at his dig site. I think working with him would benefit my studies immensely. You see, I am looking to specialize in Mineralogy, and Professor Skywalker is the only person in this sector with the type of experience I’m looking to learn from.”

“I see,” Dean Kenobi said, looking down at the form. His was the only signature missing from the piece of paper. Rey had gotten approval from the Geology department chair without much trouble. He wasn’t the biggest fan of Professor Skywalker, but he empathized with Rey’s interests so he signed off. The Dean of Institutional Research had also approved Rey’s request, but only after making sure that Professor Skywalker’s dig site was safe and following all the regulations. Dean Kenobi was the last person whose approval Rey needed, but she knew that he would also be the hardest to convince.

There was a pause before Dean Kenobi continued. “I understand your interest in Professor Skywalker’s work, and I admire your ambition. But of course, I must ask: are you sure that there is no full-time faculty on campus that you could work with?”

Of course, Rey had considered this possibility. She had always wanted to do a special studies anyway, and she had started to come up with backup plans in case studying with Professor Skywalker didn’t work out. Rey could have done some work in the lab with Maz, but she had looked a lot into the type of research Professor Skywalker was doing at his dig site. Her interests lined up most closely with his work.

“I don’t think so, sir,” Rey replied. It was only half a lie; the type of work that she could do with Maz would not be the same type of work she would be doing with Professor Skywalker. “Professor Skywalker’s work is different than any of the on-campus options that I looked into. I think going off-campus to work with Professor Skywalker, although more difficult, would be more beneficial.”

Dean Kenobi merely sat and thought for a while. He had approved requests like Rey’s in the past, but it was always a difficult decision. The galaxy was a big, scary place, and he didn’t like sending students away from the safety of campus unless they seemed equipped to do so. Rey definitely seemed capable; her transcript made Rey look intelligent, a conversation with Maz Kanata made her sound wise yet bold, and her mannerisms made her seem professional. Overall, Rey was a good candidate for off-campus work. The only thing that remained was the credibility of the professor she wished to work with.

Dean Kenobi had worked with Professor Luke Skywalker for many years before he left Resistance College for his dig site. Kenobi knew that he was very smart, and that he had many years of experience in his field. But he also knew that Skywalker was not always to be trusted. He had, after all, suddenly taken ten years off from his teaching position at the college. The day that Luke Skywalker declared his emeritus status was the day Resistance College lost a very valuable faculty member. It wasn’t just the fact that Skywalker had left, though; even during his teaching time, the professor was always up to something. He would randomly cancel classes, and he was very inconsistent with the amount of work he would give to his students. To top it all off, he was once accused of being in a relationship with another faculty member. Dean Kenobi remembered that conversation like it was yesterday; Luke had denied the allegation, but was blushing the entire time. It was clear that if there wasn’t a relationship, he definitely wanted one.

Eventually, Dean Obi-Wan Kenobi decided that Rey was qualified for off-campus work, and (against his better judgement) that Professor Luke Skywalker was a good guy. “I will approve your request,” he said after the long silence. He picked up his pen from the table and signed the form.

Rey stood up and stuck out her hand. “Thank you so much, Dean Kenobi,” she said excitedly. “I am very eager to begin my work with Professor Skywalker.”

Dean Kenobi stood up and shook Rey’s hand. “No problem, Miss Johnson. I hope to hear about your progress sometime before the end of next semester?”

“Sure thing, sir,” she said before turning towards the door. “I’ll be sure to keep you updated.” She shook the Dean’s hand once more, and then exited his office.

 

***

 

“Good news, Finn!” Rey exclaimed into the phone. “Wake up, sleepyhead!”

“Ugh,” Finn said into the receiver. He had just woken up from a nap. Poe was still asleep beside him. “What?”

“I got the last signature for the special studies!”

Finn sat bolt upright in his bed and started smiling like an idiot. “You did? Did you turn in the thing yet?”

“Yes! I just handed the form in to the registrar.” Finn could almost hear Rey’s smile through the phone.

“Wow!” Finn said excitedly. He could barely believe what he was hearing. “Great work, Rey. Listen, I can’t thank you enough for this. If you can ACTUALLY talk Professor Skywalker into coming back here, there’s actually a chance that Professor Solo won’t want to retire, and--”

Rey cut him off. “Finn. It’s really not a problem. I’m actually super excited about this. Professor Skywalker’s work is right up my alley, and he’s super smart. I actually researched a lot about what he’s been doing, and it’s really cool.”

Finn was relieved. Poe was right about this scheme being worth Rey’s while. “Good. I’m glad. It’s gonna be a really great semester for everyone, I hope.”

“Yeah,” Rey said. She sounded at ease. “Now it’s finally break. You, me, and Poe are all done with finals. I guess we can actually start to enjoy the break now.”

Finn chuckled. “Yeah, I guess we can. Now,” he looked down at the sleeping Poe. “We can all go home.”


	7. Friday, December 21st, 1345, 2:00 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finn, Poe, and Rey leave campus for the holidays.

The whirring of a thousand motors filled the air on the last day of the fall semester. Everyone was departing the college and getting ready to go home for the break. Some of the local students that lived on Jakku drove off on speeders; other Jakku natives simply had their parents pick them up from the college. A lot of the off-planet students had starships of their own, and the sky over Resistance College was filled with vehicles as they took off from the runway on the west edge of campus.

Rey pulled up to the front of Finn’s dorm in her bright red speeder. Finn and Poe were pulling their luggage behind them as they exited the building. They were getting ready to depart for Yavin 4, but they weren’t leaving without saying goodbye to Rey first.

“Hey guys! Over here!” Rey called from her speeder. The boys abandoned their luggage and walked over to her. They all embraced.

“Do you guys have everything you need for the trip? Finn, did you remember all your toiletries? I know you always forget your--”

Finn cut her off. “Yes mom, we have everything.” He blushed slightly. Finn was prone to forgetting his deodorant, but he didn’t want Poe to know that. He knew that Rey meant well, but he also knew that Rey loved to embarrass him in front of his boyfriend. It was just the way their friendship worked. If Poe noticed Finn’s slight pink coloration, he didn’t say anything.

“I’m pretty sure that we have everything,” Poe said to Rey. He clapped Finn on the back. “Besides, we won’t be gone for long. We’re coming back from Yavin 4 as soon as the interterm starts. Yavin 4 may be pretty, but there’s NOTHING to do there in the winter.”

“I see,” Rey said. She looked at her friends with a sad smile. “I’m really going to miss you guys.”

Finn took Rey into an embrace. “We’re going to miss you too.” He broke the embrace and looked her in the eyes. “Thank you so much Rey. For everything. I seriously would not have made it through this semester without you.” He hugged her again.

Rey chuckled. “Don’t thank me. Thank him.” She pointed at Poe. “I know how much he means to you.” She looked at Poe. “Thanks for taking care of him. Keep doing that over the break, okay?”

For once, Poe was the one who began to blush. “Yeah. I-- I will,” he stuttered. He wasn’t really used to being thanked. His actions and affections were second nature at this point, and no one except Finn had acknowledged them in a long time. It felt good. “Thanks Rey,” he said as he took her into an embrace.

After they broke apart, Rey looked at both of the boys. “It’s a only a couple of weeks. It’s not going to be THAT bad. Right?”

“No,” Finn said. “We’ll see each other soon.”

They all smiled and looked around at each other. Then without word, they all embraced in a group hug. They didn’t separate for about a minute. When they did, Rey could feel herself getting emotional. She climbed onto her speeder before she could start crying or anything.

“I’ll see you guys real soon,” she said as she put on her helmet. “I told my family that I’d be home by three, so I’d better get going.” She turned they key in the ignition and her speeder sprang to life.

“Bye, Rey,” Finn and Poe said in unison. They waved to her as she drove away.

 

***

 

As she rode away from Resistance College on her speeder, Rey thought about how lucky she was to have met Finn and Poe that semester. Having to leave her two best friends for an extended period of time was what had made her emotional back at Finn’s building.

Finn was the only guy who had ever treated her with respect. Every other guy her age that she had come in contact with had thought she was ‘weird,’ or ‘a nerd,’ and they usually stayed away. Finn was the first one to take Rey completely as she was, with her love for rocks, her introverted tendencies, her nose-in-a-book attitude, and all. She was really grateful that he had quite literally stumbled into her life.

Poe was a bit different. Rey didn’t really know him that well. She knew that he cared a lot about Finn, which was enough to make her respect him. She knew he was an extremely skilled pilot, and that flight came easily to him while academics didn’t. After all, there had to be some reason (other than the obvious physical attraction) that Finn was constantly tutoring Poe. Even though they weren’t really that close, Poe accepted Rey without any question. Even if it was only because she was one of Finn’s best friends, she was thankful nonetheless. She hoped that she could get to know Poe better during the spring semester.

Rey really did not like the idea of being without her friends for the next three weeks. She too would be returning to Resistance College at the beginning of interterm, so it wasn’t going to be that bad, but it was still going to be painful. Rey didn’t really get along with her family, but that was because they had abandoned her on Jakku when she was about eleven years old. She had told Finn and Poe that her family was expecting her at three, but she really just wanted to get away from her emotions in that situation. She really didn’t like to make herself vulnerable by crying. 

She hadn’t told anyone at the college that she didn’t really have a family. She had a piece of property on Jakku that still belonged to her family, and a house that she had been living in by herself for about eight years. She claimed that she was “independent” on all her tax forms, and she put down her permanent address, and the college never asked any questions. Rey wasn’t ready to tell Finn and Poe yet, either, because she was afraid that they would take pity on her. That was the last thing she wanted.

Right around three o’clock, Rey reached “home.” She turned off and locked up her speeder, and entered the house. She flopped down in an old chair in the living room and sighed. The sound of her breath practically echoed throughout the whole house. The big, empty house… Rey missed Finn and Poe already. They were probably halfway to Yavin 4 already.

 

***

 

Finn and Poe reached the parking hanger with their luggage. Finn had never seen so many ships in one place. There were TIE fighters, A-Wings, YT-1300f freighters (all disarmed, of course), and many more. They stopped when they reached an older model X-Wing. 

“Well, this is my ship,” Poe said. He smiled as he looked the starship up and down. “I know it’s not much, but it’ll get us to and from Yavin 4.” 

Finn thought it was the most glorious thing he had ever seen, but he had never had much exposure to any kind of starship. “Are you kidding? This thing is great! Poe, where did you get it?”

“My boss sold it to me,” he said. He walked around to the rear of the ship and opened the rear hatch. Back in the day, the weapons would have been situated in that compartment, but this X-Wing had been disarmed for a long time. All that was left was an empty chamber, so Poe took all the luggage and put it inside. “When I graduated high school, she sold it to me pretty cheap. You know, as a thank-you for all the work I did for her over the years.”

“Yeah,” Finn said, still admiring the ship. “That’s really cool.” He was still mesmerized.

Poe laughed at how enthralled Finn was with his ship. “Jeez! You never check ME out like that,” he said. Finn broke his concentration. “C’mon, buddy,” Poe continued. “Get in. We’re scheduled to take off in twenty minutes.” 

A set of stairs descended from the cockpit of the X-Wing when Poe pressed a button on the remote key set. Poe motioned for Finn to go up first. He climbed up to the top and saw that there were two seats, one in back of the other. The cockpit was narrow. Figuring he wasn’t driving, Finn climbed into the backseat. Poe was close behind him, and he climbed into the driver’s seat. 

“Look under your seat for a helmet,” Poe said to Finn. Finn did what he was told. After securing the helmet on his head, Finn saw Poe putting on his seatbelt and locking his seat in place. He followed suit.

With the touch of a button, Poe brought the X-Wing to life. He slowly inched it out of the parking spot and drove out of the hanger. They sped up a little bit when they got outside of the hanger, but Poe stopped on the runway and waited for clearance.

“Awaiting clearance for takeoff,” Poe said into the headset that was built into his helmet.

“Rodger that, Dameron,” a voice said over the intercom. “Authorizing takeoff.” There was a pause. “Cleared for takeoff. Wait for instructions.”

Another silence. After a moment: “Ready engines.” Poe pulled a few levers and the engines revved.

“Begin forward motion.”

“Hang on buddy!” Poe shouted back at Finn. The X-Wing began to accelerate at a fantastic rate down the runway. Finn was forced back into his seat.

“Separate from runway.” The ship’s wheels were no longer in contact with the runway.

“WHOOOO!” Finn exclaimed. He had never been in a ship this small, experiencing the action up close.

“You have a good holiday, Dameron,” the voice said over the intercom. “And happy new year.”

“You too,” Poe said into the headset. “Now exiting atmosphere.” The connection was lost.

 

***

 

After the excitement of takeoff, Finn didn’t say much. After the adrenaline wore off, Finn remembered how nervous he was to meet Poe’s family. 

It didn’t take Poe long to notice Finn’s silence. “Babe. Are you okay?” he asked as he glanced back towards the passenger seat.

“Yeah. I’m fine,” Finn replied. His lie was not very good, and he knew it.

“I know you better than that,” Poe said as he faced forward again. “Tell me what’s up.”

Finn gulped. “I dunno. I guess I’m just a little nervous,” he said quietly. “I want your parents to like me, but I’m such a klutz, and I have no idea how to make a good impression, and--”

Poe cut him off. “Finn. I promise that it’s going to be fine. My folks have heard nothing but good things about you. They like you already. Just be yourself and it’ll be fine.” He paused, but he knew that Finn still wasn’t convinced. “I promise.”

“I hope so,” Finn said apprehensively. “I really hope so.”


	8. Saturday, December 22nd, 1345, 10:00 AM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finn deals with his anxiety, learns something new about the Dameron family, and meets Poe's parents for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't updated this in a while, I had some family stuff come up. But I'll be back at it again more regularly from now on!

Finn awoke slowly. As he gradually opened his eyes, he realized that he was not in his dorm room. He sat bolt upright, shocked and confused about his surroundings. Finn found himself in a kempt and unfamiliar bedroom. There were knick-knacks on the dresser, and a nice armchair in the corner near a bookshelf. 

Slowly but surely, Finn remembered where he was. Late last night he and Poe had made it back to Poe’s home on Yavin 4. All of Poe’s family was asleep when they got there, so they tiptoed around as they tried to figure out how to settle in. Eventually, Poe decided that his parents wouldn’t like if they woke up and found him sleeping in the same bed with his boyfriend, so he stuck Finn in the guest bedroom. Finn wasn’t really offended; at this point, he was up for anything if it meant making a good impression on Poe’s family.

After remembering what exactly was happening, Finn got up out of bed. He went over to the window. The guest bedroom overlooked the front yard. There was a thin layer of snow covering the front yard, but there was something else about the front yard that struck Finn as different…

_ Holy shit _ , he thought.  _ That front yard is huge! _ Finn wasn’t wrong; there was a long private driveway that led up to the house, and the yard spanned the distance from the end of the driveway to the front of the house. In the yard was an abundance of trees native to Yavin 4, a fountain (which wasn’t running since it was winter), and a tall flagpole. The national flag of Yavin 4 flew from the top of the flagpole. Finn could also see Poe’s X-Wing parked in the driveway near the house. It only took up a small portion of the private drive.

That’s when Finn had a realization.  _ Oh my god, the Damerons are rich. _

There was suddenly a whole new set of standards that Finn had to set for himself. He came from a poor family that hailed from a poor planet on the other side of the galaxy. The only reason he was able to attend Resistance College was because the school gave him a large need-based grant. He had never seen the life of the upper class, let alone had first-hand exposure to it. Now, for the next two and a half weeks, he would be living with the upper class. How was he supposed to act? Were there things he was supposed to do to fit in? Did they have accents like the people in the movies?

Finn tried to calm himself down. He could feel an anxiety attack coming on. He didn’t want to be worried about how Poe’s family would perceive him, but now that he knew there was a socioeconomic gap present, he was freaking out. Would they judge him for not knowing as much about the ‘finer things?’ Would they think any less of him if he didn’t speak as properly, if he accidentally let some slang slip through his lips? He wanted to stop thinking about it, so he turned to the bookshelf.

The shelves were lined with a ton of crime novels. Finn breathed sigh of relief. He loved crime dramas, whether they were TV shows, books, or movies. If there were that many crime dramas in the house, someone had to like them. Now, he knew that he had something in common with one of Poe’s family members. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.

Finn heard rustling out in the hallway, so he leapt back into the bed and pretended to be asleep. He wasn’t ready to face Poe’s family quite yet, so he didn’t want anyone to know that he was awake. He started to hear voices out in what he figured was the kitchen. He could hear pots and pans clanging around a little bit, as if the Damerons were about to start cooking brunch or something.

“How was your flight?” a female voice asked. It must have been Poe’s mother.

“It was good,” Poe’s voice said in reply. Finn breathed another sigh of relief. At least he knew that if he went out there, Poe would be there too. It wouldn’t just be him awkwardly sitting and trying to make small with Poe’s family.

“That’s good, sweetie,” Poe’s mom said. There was some more banging, as if the pans were being set down on the stove. There was a pause where no noise was audible. “And where’s Finn?” Poe’s mom continued.

Another pause. “He’s probably still sleeping,” Poe said. “In the guest bedroom.”

“Alright,” Poe’s mom said. “I just want to make sure he gets breakfast.” Yet another pause. “How is that going, anyway?”

“What do you mean?” Poe sounded agitated, like he knew exactly what his mom meant but didn’t want to talk about it.

“You know,” his mom said. She sounded cheerful compared to Poe. “The relationship. Is everything good between you two?”

“Yes, mom.” Finn could practically hear Poe roll his eyes. “Do you think I would have invited him here if things weren’t going really well?”

“I suppose not,” Poe’s mom said with a sigh. “I don’t know. I’m just not used to this yet. You’ve never had a boyfriend before. I don’t know how to handle this. The last relationship you had, you were still--”

Poe cut her off rather violently. “What do you mean you don’t know how to handle it? You handle it the same way you’ve handled every other relationship I’ve been in during my life. This is no different.”

Finn knew very well that he was Poe’s first relationship since he came out as gay. Poe’s mom was clearly not used to her son dating another guy. This worried Finn even more. What if Poe’s family judged him simply because he was a dude dating another dude? He hadn’t even thought about that possibility because he knew that Poe was out to his parents. But now that possibility seemed very real, and he could feel the waves of anxiety rolling up to him again.

In an attempt to calm himself, Finn remembered something Poe had told him a while back when they were talking about the trip to Yavin 4. “My parents will like you for who you are; it doesn’t matter WHAT you are.” When Poe said that, they weren’t talking about the fact that Finn was gay, but the statement still helped in this context.

That’s when Finn decided to make the trip out into the kitchen. He was afraid, but he didn’t really want to find out where Poe’s conversation with his mother would go if it continued. So he stood up, put on some proper clothes, made sure his hair was okay, and walked out into the hallway.

The hall was as magnificent as the yard outside the house. There was a large crystal chandelier hanging down from the high ceiling that loomed above. Finn took a deep breath as the hallway opened up into the kitchen area. 

Poe was facing the hallway when Finn came into the room. Poe’s mom was facing away, towards the stove. Poe’s eyes lit up when he saw Finn, but he still looked apprehensive.

Poe took a deep breath before speaking. “Mom. This is Finn.”

Poe’s mom turned around. The first moment that she was looking at Finn was rather awkward, but then she started towards him. Finn stuck out his hand instinctively.

“Hi. Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Dameron,” he said almost mechanically. 

Poe’s mother didn’t take his hand for a moment. “Please, call me Shara,” she said. Then suddenly, she took Finn into an embrace. The look on Finn’s face must have been so shocked, because Poe chuckled. After a moment, Shara Dameron let Finn out of the embrace.

She looked Finn straight in the eye and said “I’m so glad to finally meet you. Please, make yourself at home.”

In that moment, Finn knew everything was going to be alright.

 

***

 

Later that day, Poe and Finn were sitting at the dinner table with Poe’s parents. Poe’s dad, Kes Dameron, had returned from work earlier that afternoon; his job required him to work half a day on Saturdays. So far, things were going pretty well for Finn. Shara had really taken a liking to him, and they had been talking for most of the day. Poe mostly looked on at smiling.

Dinner was a whole new battle, though. After returning from work, Kes Dameron had ventured into the basement, and he did not come out until Shara called downstairs to him at dinner time. Shara said that it was nothing personal; Kes just really liked working on projects, and he had created a workshop down in the cellar.

Finn got his first good look at Kes Dameron at the dinner table. He looked a lot like Poe; they shared their heights, hair colors, and nose shapes with each other. Poe looked a little bit like his mother, but there was definitely more of his father in him. Seeing that made Finn smile. But it also made him nervous. Meeting Poe’s mother was one thing; she was energetic and kept Finn occupied. The constant interaction with her had nipped whatever worries Finn had about meeting her right in the bud. But Kes was different. He seemed quiet and stoic, and he barely said anything when dinner began. His silence scared Finn. How was he supposed to make a good impression on Kes Dameron if he wasn’t even given an opportunity?

Kes’s presence was making Finn anxious, so he wasn’t about to be the first one to speak at the silent dinner table. He tried to eat his food as daintily and politely as possible; it made him look like kind of a pansy, but at least he looked more sophisticated that way. He looked over at Poe, who was wolfing down his dinner. Shara was smiling and eating her dinner as well. Kes was looking down at his plate, and not really making eye contact with anyone.

After a while, with his plate mostly clean, Poe broke the silence. “Dinner is great, mom. Thanks.”

Shara smiled sweetly at her son. “No problem, sweetie. It’s my pleasure.” She turned her attention to Finn. “Is everything okay, Finn? Do you need anything?”

Finn gulped. “Yes, it’s delicious,” he said. “Thank you so much.”

“I’m glad,” Shara said with a smile. She then turned to her husband. “Honey, how was your day?”

“It was good,” Kes Dameron grumbled after a moment. “I worked on the bench for the backyard this afternoon. It’s almost done.”

“Oh, good,” Shara said. It was obvious that she was trying to keep the meal from being awkward. It wasn’t really working. “It’ll look good next to the pool.” Another reminder that Finn was now among the elite. Not a single family on his planet had a pool in their backyard.

There was another, but quicker, silence. Then, for the first time, Kes addressed Finn. “So. Finn. What are you doing up at Resistance College?”

Finn was so nervous, he wanted to throw up. He managed to keep himself together and reply to Kes. “I’m studying Engineering, sir,” he said, his voice shaking a tad. “And I’m thinking of minoring in Business Management.” Finn didn’t know why he said that last part. He hadn’t told anyone about his intended minor yet.

Before Kes Dameron could respond, his son jumped in. “You never told me that,” Poe said.

Finn quickly tried to save himself. “It’s a more recent idea,” he said.

“That’s great,” Kes said, ignoring his son’s interjection. “Engineering is a broad field, and Poe says that you’re smart, so I’m sure you’ll find success there.”

“Thank you, sir” Finn said. “I hope that someday I can.”

“Maybe you can work with Poe one day. If you do Aerospace engineering, maybe you  can work on the ships while Poe flies ‘em. You know he can fly anything.”

Poe chuckled. “Dad!”

Kes ignored his son once again. He continued to address Finn. “And please,” he said, “call me Kes. There’s no need for formalities. You’re part of the family now.”

Finn could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks. He looked over to Poe. For the first time since they met, Poe was blushing worse than Finn. His face was red as a tomato. 

“Kes!” Shara said in an attempt to scold her husband. It didn’t work too well, because she was giggling behind her words,

“What?” Kes said. “I’m just telling it like it is.”

It was then that Finn learned that Kes Dameron was a very blunt man… but he was also a pretty kind one.

 

***

 

It was well past midnight when Finn awoke suddenly. The sound of a flushing toilet nearby interrupted his slumber.

After a moment, he heard footsteps going down the hallway in the opposite direction from the kitchen. At that end of the the hallway was the family room, which included a TV equipped with gaming consoles, several couches, and a moderately-sized aquarium.

Finn began to hear voices. “What are you doing up?” Poe’s voice said.

“We’re watching the Late Show,” Shara replied. “You know, the one that Jar Jar Binks just became the host of.”

“It’s actually pretty funny.” Kes Dameron’s gruff voice.

“Alright,” Poe said to his parents. “Goodnight.” Finn heard a few footsteps before Shara stopped Poe.

“Wait,” she said. “We wanted to tell you something.”

A few more footsteps as Poe returned to the family room. “Yeah?”

“We just wanted to tell you,” Kes said, “that we really like Finn. He seems like a smart kid.”

“And he’s funny and sweet,” Shara added.

“Yeah,” Poe said. Finn could almost hear Poe smiling. “He’s really great.” There was a hesitation before he said something Finn was not expecting to hear. “I really love ‘im.”

Finn’s breath got caught in his throat. He had been dating Poe for over three months, and he had never told Finn that he loved him. Finn definitely felt that he was in love with Poe, but he didn’t want to be the first one to say it. How awkward would it be if he were to say it, and Poe didn’t say it back? There was no shame in his feelings, but Finn knew it would suck nonetheless. So he waited. And now, he didn’t have to wait anymore. He knew that Poe loved him. And what a feeling that was.

Finn was torn from his thoughts when he heard voices again. “That’s all that matters to us, sweetie,” Shara’s voice said.

“Your mother is right,” Kes said. His voice seemed less rough this time. “Now, go to bed son.”

“Okay,” Poe said as he began to walk down the hall. “Goodnight again.”

“Goodnight,” his parents called after him in unison.

As Poe walked past the guest bedroom and to his own room, Finn rolled over and pretended he was asleep… just in case Poe decided to come in. When he heard Poe’s bedroom door close, he knew that he was in the clear. Finn rolled over onto his stomach and screamed into his pillow as quietly as he could.

Then, he fell asleep with a smile on his face.


	9. Tuesday, December 25th, 1345, 8:30 AM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Each of our friends from Resistance College finds a different way to spend Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was the most difficult for me to write, but I had so much fun writing it! I hope y'all enjoy it, please leave comments telling me what you think.

The sun rose over Jakku on Christmas morning. The church bells rang in the village and Rey’s sleep was disturbed. She awoke in her room, which was cold, dusty, and lonely.

The house hadn’t really been properly cleaned in a few months, since Rey went off to Resistance College that September. She told herself that she would do it before she went back to the college at the start of interterm.

When her parents left all those years ago, she wasn’t really sure of how to clean or run the house on her own. But out of necessity she taught herself. She had never gotten the hang of paying bills and making sure that the power didn’t go out, though. Even if she had, she didn’t have the money to pay for utilities. Luckily, the temperature on Jakku never dipped below forty degrees fahrenheit, so heat wasn’t really necessary. Rey learned to live without TV and the internet, so she didn’t mind not being able to pay the cable bills, either. The only problem arose in the summer, when temperatures would reach over one-hundred degrees fahrenheit. Luckily, most people from Jakku were born with the ability to withstand the heat. As long as Rey spent enough time in the shade, and drank enough water, she survived.

The holidays were by far the worst time of the year for Rey. Everyone else in her village was spending time with their families, but she was stuck in her house alone. To top it off, the house was dark, cold, and empty. On Christmas Day she liked to go out and take walks. She found solace in the cheerful faces of her neighbors. She knew that they were happy now, and someday she would find that kind of happiness, too.

This particular Christmas was the worst of all, though. In previous years, there really was no one that she could even potentially spend the holiday with. Her family was gone, she didn’t really have any friends, and she pretty much ignored her neighbors. This Christmas, though… this Christmas was different. She had found two people whom she liked to spend time with, who accepted her for who she was. Poe and Finn were the closest thing she had to a ‘family.’ Finn was the only brother she would ever find, and Poe was like the brother-in-law that tagged along for the ride.

Rey had found her family, but they weren’t with her on Christmas. And that sucked. She was alone, and she didn’t really have to be. She sat up in her bed and looked out on the window. She decided to take her annual Christmas Day walk. Maybe it would take her mind off the absence of her friends. But she would be seeing them soon…

 

***

 

Poe pounced on Finn as he slept in the guest bedroom Christmas morning. Finn groaned as he always did when he was disturbed from his slumber.

“Wake up, wake up!” Poe exclaimed. He was practically jumping on Finn. “It’s Christmas! We need to open presents, and light the tree, and eat Christmas breakfast, and--”

Finn had never seen Poe so excited. Poe had warned Finn that Christmas was a pretty big holiday at the Dameron residence, and he wasn’t kidding. 

Finn sat upright in the bed in an attempt to keep Poe from continuing his attack. Poe backed off when he saw Finn getting up, and he sat across from him in the bed. Then he leaned in for a kiss.

“Merry Christmas, Finn,” Poe said before their lips met. As they kissed, he pushed Finn down onto the bed. 

Finn could feel himself getting a little hot and bothered as they continued to kiss, but he felt awkward being so aroused in the Dameron’s house. He separated his lips from Poe’s, and eventually they both calmed down.

“Merry Christmas, baby,” Finn said. He hesitated for a moment, then decided to drop the bomb for the first time. He was never one for dramatic behavior on holidays, but he decided that he could make an exception. He looked Poe in the eyes and said, “I love you, Poe.”

Poe was taken aback by Finn’s words. “I love you, too,” he said, almost shocked. Between the familiarity of the words on his lips from the other night, and Finn’s assuredness in his own words, Poe figured it out. “Oh god,” he exclaimed, embarrassed. “You heard me tell my parents the other night, didn’t you?” Poe may have been flustered by the situation, but he was secretly relieved. After like three weeks of dating Finn, Poe knew that he was in love. He was too shy to say it, though, for he feared the Finn would not feel the same way after so little time.

Finn chuckled. “Yeah, I did,” he said, taking Poe’s hand. “But I didn’t need to hear that to know that I love you.”

“Me neither. I’ve loved you for a long while,” Poe admitted. “I’ve just been too chicken to tell you.”

“I was kind of in the same boat,” Finn said with a smile. “But now the cat’s out of the bag.”

They both laughed. “Come on,” Poe said as he grasped Finn’s hand a little tighter. “Let’s go out to the living room and say ‘Merry Christmas’ to my parents.”

The couple walked down the hallway to the family room, where Kes and Shara were already setting up the Christmas tree.

Shara turned around when she heard footsteps. “Good morning, boys!” she said cheerfully as they entered the room. Poe and Finn quickly dropped their hands to their sides, hoping that Shara wouldn’t notice. That was useless because Shara did notice, but she didn’t mind. In fact, she felt warm inside knowing her son was happy.

“Come help us decorate the tree,” Kes said from the corner of the room. There were packages situated under the tree, but there weren’t many ornaments on it yet. There was a box of decorations beside Kes, and the boys ran over to assist.

There were colored balls, funny ornaments (there were several that Poe had made during his elementary school days, and another one shaped like a Wookie), candy canes, and strings of white lights. Between Finn, Poe, Shara, and Kes, it wasn’t long before the entire tree was decked out in holiday style.

After they were finished, everyone sat down on the couch and in the chairs. Shara got up and started handing people presents from under the tree.

Kes opened up a few packages. Enclosed were some new tools, some dress shirts, and socks. Poe also got him a cool figurine of a lightsaber.

“This is pretty cool, son,” Kes said to Poe as he opened up the figurine. “I love all this mythological stuff. Thanks.”

Poe beamed at his dad.

Shara opened up her gifts next. She got some new makeup, kitchen supplies, and a dress from Kes.

“For the next time I take you out,” he said to his wife. He gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Poe was up next. He got some spending money from his parents, a few little knick-knacks for the dashboard of the X-Wing, some clothes, and of course some socks that his grandmother had sent. He was especially amused by a bobble-head Wookie that Kes had picked up at the corner store.

“Now you’ll have a travel companion, even when Finn isn’t around,” Kes said with a chuckle.

It was time for Finn to give his present to Poe. “Your present is in the guest bedroom,” Finn said as he stood up. “It’s kinda obvious, so I didn’t want to put it in here and spoil the surprise.”

Finn came back with a big, round package. It was poorly wrapped, but Poe figured that it was the effort that mattered. He knew almost immediately what it was. He tore through the wrapping and his suspicions were confirmed; it was a shiny new flying helmet with the Resistance College insignia painted on the side.

“I know you needed a new helmet,” Finn said. “You always complained about how the padding was rotting away in yours. And I thought this one was nice, you know, with the good old alma mater on the side.”

Poe was blown away. “This is amazing, Finn,” he said. He couldn’t take his eyes off the helmet. When he finally did, he looked up at his boyfriend. “Thank you.” He leaned over and gave Finn a hug.

“Alright,” Shara said after the everyone was done fawning over the helmet. “Kes and I have a little something for you, Finn.” She reached under the tree and grabbed a small box. “We know that you’ll be able to use this next semester, you know, for books and things.”

Finn opened the box, and inside was a gift card to the Resistance College bookstore. He opened the small envelope that held the card, and he almost stopped breathing when he saw the dollar amount. It was worth two-hundred dollars.

Finn was speechless for a brief moment. Then he got up to hug Shara. “Thank you so much, you guys. I’ll definitely be able to use this.” Shara accepted the hug, and then he went to shake Kes’s hand. For the second time since his arrival at the Dameron residence, he was denied a handshake and given a hug.

Poe looked over to Finn next. “I have something for you, too. It’s pretty fitting, considering what you got me.” Poe went under the tree and grabbed another small box. He handed it to Finn.

Inside the box was a set of keys. Finn was confused. “Are these… are these the keys to the X-Wing?”

Poe smiled mischievously. “Not quite,” he said. “They’re the SPARE keys to the X-Wing.”

“Poe, I can’t fly. You know that.” He attempted to give the keys back to Poe.

Poe laughed and pushed Finn’s hand away. “I do know that. That’s why I’m going to teach you. In the X-Wing. The keys are for you to hang onto, and whenever you want a flying lesson, you come over and show them to me. Then we’ll go.”

Finn’s jaw was halfway to the floor. After a moment, he started laughing and couldn’t stop. “I’m going to fly!” he said through his laughter. “I’m finally going to fly!” He hugged Poe and didn’t let go.

Shara was laughing, too. “Okay, okay,” she said. “There’s one thing left for each of us.” She pulled four identical envelopes from underneath the tree. She distributed three of them to Poe, Finn, and Kes, and she kept one for herself.

“Open them on three!” she said excitedly. “One, two… three!”

They all tore open their envelopes. Enclosed were slips of paper. There was a few seconds of silence while everyone tried to figure out what the papers meant. After a moment, Poe jumped up.

“YA-HOO!” he yelped. “We’re going to the North Sector!”

Finn was confused. He kept looking at his piece of paper. “The North Sector? What’s that?”

“It’s the biggest vacation destination in the galaxy!” said Poe excitedly.

Shara smiled at Finn. “That’s right,” she said. “I’ve booked an all-expense-paid trip to the North Sector for the four of us. We’re scheduled to go right after your spring semester ends.”

A wide smile broke out on Finn’s face. A vacation? He never could have dreamed of such a thing. His family never had the money to go on vacation.

“Thank you so much,” Finn said to Shara and Kes. Poe was still jumping around like a ten-year-old on the other side of the family room. “I’m really honored and grateful that you could find a spot for me on your family vacation.”

Kes and Shara looked at each other, smiling. “Of course, dear,” Shara said. “It’s not a problem.”

“You’re always welcome here,” Kes said. It was the first time Kes smiled directly at Finn. 

Suddenly, Poe grabbed Finn’s hand and pulled him up from his position on the floor. “Come on!” he exclaimed. “Get excited!” He took both of Finn’s hands and started jumping up and down again, encouraging Finn to jump along with him. Finn obliged him, laughing at just how happy his boyfriend was.

Shara had stood up from the couch and started to walk out of the family room. “Come on, boys,” she said. “It’s time for the annual Dameron Christmas breakfast.”

That got Poe’s attention. He stopped jumping, and he put his arm around Finn’s shoulder. After catching his breath, he said to Finn, “Let’s go.”

Finn put his arm around Poe’s shoulder, and they walked down the hallway to the kitchen like that. For the first time in a long time, Finn truly felt as if he was home.

 

***

 

On Christmas morning, Professor Han Solo was sitting in the parlor of his home on Jakku. His residence was situated on a street where all the houses looked the same. This was the housing that Resistance College provided to faculty that could not, or did not want to, find housing elsewhere. After he divorced Leia Organa, Professor Solo had no desire to try his luck in the Jakku real estate market. The college set him up with some faculty housing. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for a single man. It also put him closer to the college, where Professor Luke Skywalker used to spend a lot of his time.

Professor Solo looked out of the big bay window at the front of the parlor. Some smoke floated up from the pipe that he held between his lips. There was no snow on the ground on Jakku; it never got cold enough on the planet for that, and precipitation was rare anyway. There was no such thing as a “white Christmas” on Jakku. 

The professor had spent all of his most recent Christmases alone. He didn’t even really celebrate the holiday anymore. He just sat in the parlor, smoked his pipe, and maybe he turned on the TV if his favorite Christmas movie was on the program that year. But most of all, Han Solo just sat and thought about a better time, a time where he was less lonely.

On that particular Christmas morning, Professor Solo happened to remember the last Christmas that he had not spent alone. It had to have been over ten years ago, because he had spent that Christmas at Luke Skywalker’s house. Since Leia had left the picture, and the rest of Solo’s family was gone, Skywalker had invited his colleague (and friend) over for Christmas dinner. Professor Skywalker also lived in Resistance College’s faculty housing, so Han Solo did not have to walk very far.

Professor Solo remembered that he and Professor Skywalker had gotten rather drunk after dinner that evening, and things got a little carried away…

_ “It’s eleven-eleven,” Luke said. “Make a wish, Han.” _

_ Han closed his eyes and silently made a wish. He opened his eyes, but the clock still read 11:11. He closed his eyes again and reiterated his wish a few more times in his head. _

_ When he opened his eyes again, Luke was looking right at him. “What?” Han asked in that tone of voice that he only used with Luke. _

_ “What did you wish for?” Luke asked. He put his chin in his hand, and rested his elbow on the arm of his chair. _

_ Han laughed a hearty laugh. “You know I can’t tell you that,” he said. “It won’t come true if I tell you.” _

_ “I suppose you’re right,” Luke said with a chuckle. He picked up his wine glass and finished off the contents. “Do you want any more wine?” he asked Han. “I’m all out.” _

_ Han picked up his glass and drank the remaining wine. He then offered it to Luke. “I would love some.” _

_ Luke took the glass from Han’s hand, and walked off into the kitchen to replenish their wine. Han watched Luke’s ass as he left the room. All he could think about was how his wish was to kiss Luke that night. _

_ A moment later, Luke came back with two wine glasses that were filled to the brim. He handed one to Han. _

_ “Cheers,” Luke said as he held up his glass. “To the holidays. And to friendship.” _

_ Han’s heart sank a little bit when Luke said “friendship.” Nonetheless, he offered up his glass of wine. “Cheers.” The glasses touched and emitted a clinking sound. _

_ Han guzzled half of his wine on the first go. Minutes later, he could feel himself getting even more woozy. He couldn’t even remember the last time that he was that drunk. He looked over to Luke, and his wine glass was completely drained already. _

_ “I gotta tell you,” Han said. His speech was beginning to sound slurred. “I’m really glad you invited me over here. It’s hard when you ain’t got no one, you know?” _

_ “Yeah, I getcha,” Luke replied. The alcohol seemed to have impaired his speech even more. “My parents have been gone a long time. I’ve spent the holidays all alone for a while now. But that was before you came along.” _

_ Han could only smile. Then, he said something that he had never intended to admit to Luke. The alcohol made him lose control a little bit, he supposed. “Luke, I gotta tell you something. But you gotta promise that you won’t tell anyone.” _

_ Luke put his right hand over his heart. “I promise, I won’t tell no one. I’m so juiced, I probably won’t remember in the morning anyway.” _

_ “Alright,” Han said. He looked around, as if making sure that no one was listening in on their conversation. “Luke, I’m gay. I think that’s why I didn’t like being married to Leia.” _

_ Luke started laughing so hard he almost fell out of his chair. “Oh Han,” he said. “I’ve known that for ages.” He lowered his voice. “I’ve got a secret of my own, though.” He started giggling. _

_ Han’s breath faltered. He leaned in closer to Luke. “What?” _

_ Luke couldn’t stop giggling. Eventually, he ceased long enough to utter the words: “I’m gay too.” _

_ Han’s heart soared. He tried to act cool, and kind of surprised. “Huh. I never knew that.” _

_ “Well then, your gaydar is way off dude,” Luke said. “I’m about as gay as they come. And I’ll prove it to ya.” _

_ What happened next was something Han could never forget. Luke got up from his chair, walked over to where Han was sitting, and planted a kiss right on Han’s lips. _

_ Han supposed that 11:11 wishes did work sometimes. _

_ Han felt Luke’s tongue enter his mouth, and before he could give himself a chance to think about it, he was kissing Luke back. He felt himself getting aroused, but he couldn’t take advantage of Luke while he was this drunk. He gently pushed Luke off of him. _

_ “I’m sorry,” Luke said as he walked away from Han. “I shouldn’t have done that.” _

_ Han stood up and followed Luke. He grabbed Luke’s shoulders and turned him around so that they were facing each other. “No,” he said gently. “I’m glad you did.” _

_ Luke smiled sweetly at Han. “Me too,” he said. _

_ “You need to go to bed, though,” Han said. “You’re very drunk.” _

_ Luke laughed. “Well, I guess I am.” _

_ Han smiled at Luke and took his arm. “Come on,” he said as he began to walk Luke down the hallway. “Let me put you to bed.” _

_ Han knew exactly where the bedroom was, because each of the faculty housing homes were laid out in exactly the same way. Once they reached the bedroom, Han made sure that Luke got into bed alright. _

_ “Thanks,” Luke said when he was finally situated.  _

_ “It’s not a problem,” Han said with a smile. “Goodnight.” He began to exit the room. _

_ “Wait,” Luke called after him. Han turned around and walked back to the side of the bed. _

_ “What?” he asked with sarcastic impatience. _

_ “Goodnight,” Luke said. He sat upright and gave Han a quick kiss on the lips. He then laid back down and fell asleep almost immediately. _

_ Han watched over Luke for a moment. When he was sure that he was asleep, he exited the bedroom and turned out the light. He walked to the front of the house and left, closing the door quietly behind him. _

_ He couldn’t stop thinking about the feeling of Luke’s lips against his as he walked home. _

Professor Skywalker must have been even more drunk that night than Professor Solo suspected, because he never brought up what happened. He had most likely forgotten everything that occurred after he finished that last glass of wine. Either that, or Skywalker was simply okay with what had happened. He probably thought that it was a one time thing, and that it was nothing to fret over. Professor Solo figured that both of them had made themselves vulnerable, and it was just a moment of weakness. Either way, that night faded into memory like ancient history.

Han Solo took another puff from his pipe. Man, did he miss Luke Skywalker.


	10. Monday, January 7th, 1346, 11:15 AM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio returns to Resistance College.

Poe and Finn had just landed back on Jakku. It was the first day of the interterm at Resistance College. Poe parked the X-Wing on the fifth level of the school parking hanger. He and Finn were walking down the stairs to the ground level when they spotted Rey parking her speeder on the second level, where the smaller vehicles were housed.

Upon seeing Rey, Finn ran over to her. He hugged her from behind, and Rey jumped approximately three feet in the air.

“Rey!” Finn exclaimed. “I’m so happy to see you!”

After realizing who had just pounced on her, Rey turned her head over her shoulder and laughed. She patted Finn’s hands and said, “I’m glad to see you too.”

Eventually Finn released his grip. Rey was able to turn around. She gave him a real hug, and then she turned to Poe.

“Hi Poe,” she said as she took him into an embrace. “How was the trip from Yavin 4?”

“It wasn’t that bad,” Poe replied as they came out of the hug. “A little trouble getting out of the atmosphere on the planet because of all the snow, but other than that it was fine.”

“That’s good,” Rey said. The trio walked down the rest of the stairs. When they got to the ground level, Rey began walking in the direction of her dorm. She and Finn lived in an area of campus called Orchard Street. A lot of the older living buildings were located there.

Finn began to follow Rey, but then realized that Poe would not be walking in the same direction. Poe lived on Upper College Lane, another large living area that was on the opposite side of campus from Orchard Street.

“I’m going to go unpack,” Poe said as Finn turned back to him. He planted a kiss on Finn’s lips.

“Alright,” Finn said as they pulled away. “Me too. Come over whenever you want.”

The two parted ways, and Rey and Finn started to head towards Orchard Street.

“So…” Rey said suggestively. She turned her head and smirked at Finn.

Finn looked puzzled. “‘So’ what?”

“‘So’ how was your Christmas with Poe? What else would I be asking about?”

“I don’t know!” he said, exasperated. Rey always tried to be funny and mysterious around Finn, but he couldn’t seem to get past how cryptic she was sometimes. “Anyway, it was really good. I was really nervous at first, as you can imagine.”

Rey’s face became more somber. She liked to mess with her friend, but she also knew how serious his anxiety was. Meeting his boyfriend’s parents for the first time was probably really stressful for Finn. Well, even more stressful than everything else in Finn’s life.

“Yeah,” Rey said empathetically. “But it did go well?”

“Uh-huh,” Finn replied. “It went really well. Poe’s mom is really friendly. She loved to talk about just random stuff, so she kept me pretty occupied. His dad worked a lot, and the first time I like actually talked to him he came across as super intimidating. But he was actually really nice and like really understanding? I don’t know. It was just really…” There was a pause. “ … nice. It was really nice.”

Rey smiled sweetly at her friend. “I’m really glad that you had a good time. Did Poe like his Christmas present?”

“Oh!” Finn said, as if remembered something. “Yeah, he really liked the present. He like couldn’t take his eyes off of it for like the entirety of Christmas morning. But that wasn’t the highlight of the gift-giving.”

“Really?” Rey asked. She was curious. Finn had worked really hard to get Poe the personalized helmet, so she wondered what could have topped that.

“Yeah,” Finn said. “His parents, like… booked us all a vacation. All four of us are going to the North Sector after this semester is over. It’s apparently like a big deal.”

Rey stopped right in her tracks. “The North Sector? Finn, holy shit! That is a big deal! Do you know how much it costs to book a vacation in the North Sector?”

“Yeah,” Finn replied, resigned. “It’s a lot of money.”

“That’s an understatement,” Rey said. She started walking again. “Man, I knew the Damerons were loaded, but I didn’t know they were THAT loaded.”

Finn whipped his head around to look at Rey. “What? You knew Poe’s family was rich?”

“Of course!” she exclaimed. “Almost everyone knows that the Damerons are one of the richest families in that part of the galaxy.”

“Well, if everyone knew, then why didn’t I know until I saw this huge house on this enormous piece of property that they’ve got up there?”

Finn had a good point. “I don’t know,” Rey replied. “Maybe Poe wanted you to see him for he who is, not for what everyone else makes him out to be.”

“I guess that’s true,” Finn said. He thought for a moment. “Well, I do love him for who he is. Rich or not, he’s really great, and so is his family.”

In that moment, Rey got another shock. “Whoa,” she said, sputtering. “You love him?” Finn gave her a glare. “Okay, I knew that you loved him. A blind Gungan could see that. But I didn’t think you were actually gonna say it any time soon.”

“I wasn’t,” Finn said. His chest seemed to puff out a little bit, like he was proud of himself. “But I overheard Poe telling his parents that he loved me while we were there, and I decided it was safe to, you know, drop the bomb.”

“I see,” Rey said. “Well, I’m glad everything went well.”

“Me too,” Finn said. “Anyway, how was your holiday? Did anything good happen?”

By this point, Finn and Rey had reached Orchard Street. They stopped in front of Rey’s building, but Finn still had a little ways to go before he reached his dorm.

“Eh, you know,” Rey said with a fake smile. “It was pretty normal. Just the usual.”

Finn smiled and laughed. “Yeah,” he said. “But sometimes normal is better.” He looked in the direction of his building. “Alright, I gotta go unpack. But tell me more about your Christmas later!”

“Yeah, I will,” Rey said as she feinted a laugh.

Rey walked into her dormitory. Finn had no idea that her idea of a ‘normal’ holiday was not ‘better.’ And he certainly did not know that Rey was _not_ going to fill him in on the rest of her Christmas tales.


	11. Tuesday, January 22nd ,1346, 12:30 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey asks Poe for a favor.

Rey threw her dig kit into her backpack. She had just gone out to buy it over the weekend in preparation for her first day at Professor Skywalker’s dig site. Classes had started one day ago, but now it was the first Tuesday of the semester; that meant that it was the first day of Rey’s special studies.

The dig kit included a trowel, a hammer, some magnifying glasses, cleaning brushes, safety goggles, and a box with different compartments to hold specimens. The kit was one of the most expensive things that Rey owned, next to her computer and her cell phone. She couldn’t really afford really nice things; the only money she really had was the small amount she was allowed to extract from her parents’ bank accounts each month. That aside, she decided that the dig kit would serve her well throughout the entirety of her Geology career. It was kind of worth it to invest in a nice one that would last.

Rey exited her dorm room when she suddenly had a realization. She had overlooked a very important aspect of her special studies arrangement: transportation to the dig site.

_ Shit, shit, shit!  _ Rey thought. Her thoughts were scrambled as she tried to figure out a way to get there before one o’clock, because Professor Skywalker was expecting her to arrive then.

Suddenly, Rey remembered that Poe had off on Tuesday afternoons that semester.  _ Thank God _ , she thought. She took out her phone and gave Poe a call.

“Hello?” Poe said as he picked up the phone.

“Hi Poe,” Rey said into the receiver. “It’s Rey. I have a big favor to ask, but it’s kind of an emergency.”

“Okay,” Poe replied. He sounded concerned. “What’s up?”

“Do you think you can give me a ride to Professor Skywalker’s dig site?” she asked. “I totally forgot about how I’m supposed to get there, and he’s expecting me in like half an hour. It’s not that far; it’s only like three planets away.”

Poe chuckled. “Of course,” Poe said. “I’m procrastinating doing my homework at the moment, anyway. We’ll go for a quick ride. Meet me at the hangar in ten minutes.”

“Thank you so much, Poe,” she said as she started to head in the direction of the campus parking hangar. “I really owe you one.”

 

***

 

Rey got the hangar at the same time as Poe. They approached each other.

“Come on,” Poe said. “Let’s take the elevator to the fifth level.”

“Thanks again,” Rey said as they stepped into the elevator. Poe hit the button for the fifth level. 

“It’s no big deal,” Poe said. “Besides, this is a good opportunity for us to get to know one another. Finn is always talking about you, but we can barely get a word in edgewise to one another when he’s around.”

Rey blushed. She had no idea that Finn would talk about her when she wasn’t around. It was rather flattering. She chuckled at Poe’s last remark. “Yeah, he’s got a mouth on him, that’s for sure.”

They reached the fifth level of the hangar and they exited the elevator. Poe led the way to where his X-Wing was parked. He pressed a button on the remote key set, and the door to the cockpit sprung open and the stairs descended the ground. 

“Climb in,” Poe said to Rey. She ascended the stairs, with Poe close behind. After getting into the back, she put on the helmet that was located underneath the seat and buckled up.

“I can see you’re more accustomed to flying than Finn is,” Poe said as he glanced back at Rey. “He didn’t know where the helmets were located, or when to do anything.”

“Yeah,” Rey replied as she made sure everything was secure. “He’s not really used to long distance flying.”

“Did he tell you what I got him for Christmas?” Poe asked. He put on the new helmet his boyfriend had given him on that holiday.

Rey was completely distracted by Poe’s helmet. Finn had told her that he was getting Poe some new gear, but she had forgotten about it. “No,” she said, a bit wonderstruck. “Damn, Finn sure did get you a nice helmet.”

“Yeah, he did,” Poe replied, reaching up to touch the side of his helmet. “He knew that the old one was getting pretty gross, but I don’t think I really expected this. It’s incredible.” He paused, and his voice got softer. “And I gave Finn the extra set of keys to this here X-Wing. I’m going to teach him how to fly.”

“How to-- how to fly?” Rey was dumbstruck. The thought of Finn trying to fly was quite humorous. 

Poe brought the ship to life, and he began to exit the hangar. As he did so, he continued. “Mhmm,” he mumbled. “I know what you’re thinking. He’s a little antsy, and it might be hard to teach him. But I’m sure he can handle it. I want him to know how to fly. It’s a good skill, and I know how bad he wants it. It’s just to get from here to there. It’s not like any of the professional pilot stuff that I do in my Aviation classes.”

Rey was impressed. She knew that she couldn’t handle teaching Finn how to fly. He was rather impatient, and if anything ever went wrong he would panic. But that was the kind of thing that Poe could handle as his boyfriend. Rey was happy that Poe could be that for Finn.

The X-Wing took off from the runway without much of a hitch. Within a few minutes they were out of Jakku’s atmosphere. Rey and Poe kept talking about Finn, and how stuff was working out between him and Poe.

“He told me about what happened over the holiday,” Rey said. “He sounded like he had a really good time.”

“Yeah,” Poe said. “I think he did. Man, my parents really liked him. They all hit it off really well.”

“He also told me how much YOU really like him,” Rey said. She noticed herself using the same sarcastic tone of voice that she used with Finn. She felt herself becoming more comfortable around Poe.

“Oh yeah,” Poe said with a subtle giggle. He felt the blood rushing to his cheeks a bit. “We said the ‘l’ word to each other for the first time. I mean, it was only a matter of time. I kinda wished that I had said it earlier, because I felt it. I was just too scared.”

Rey beemed. She was so happy that Poe cared about Finn as much as she knew Finn cared about him. “Well, the cat’s out of the bag now,” she said. “And that’s what matters.”

They reached the planet that Professor Skywalker’s dig site was on. The X-Wing entered the atmosphere, and Poe landed it on a small runway at the edge of the mountains.

“Well, this is it,” Poe said. “I guess the dig site is up there?” He pointed up towards the foothills.

Rey looked up, and she saw a tent and some people up where Poe was pointing. “I guess so,” she said. “Listen Poe, I can’t thank you enough.”

“Like I said, it’s no big deal,” Poe replied. “I really like talking to you, Rey. What do you say we make this ride a weekly occasion?”

Rey could feel herself beginning to blush. Not many people were that generous for her sake. “You would do that? Poe, it would be a really huge favor.”

“Totally!” he said happily. “Like I said, I like talking to you. It’ll be fun.”

The cockpit opened, and the stairs descended once more. Poe got out first, and Rey followed. She gave him a hug when she reached the bottom of the stairs.

“Thank you,” she said. 

They broke apart, and Poe laughed. “Of course,” he said. “Have fun with Professor Skywalker. You gotta tell us what he’s like later.”

“I will,” Rey said. She began to walk up into the hills towards the dig site. When she heard the X-Wing take off into the air, she turned back and waved to Poe.

For being the big man on campus, Poe was a pretty sweet guy.


	12. Tuesday, January 22nd, 1346, 1:05 PM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey meets her new mentor for the first time.

Rey reached the top of the first hill, and the dig site came into view. There was one large, rectangular hole in the ground, and there were several people working in that area. There was also a bunch of terraced land going about halfway up the next hill above the dig site. There were a few more people walking around up there, who appeared to be overseeing the operation.

There was a canopy tent set up near where Rey was standing, before the large dig hole. Under the tent stood an older man. He had a substantial beard, as if he had deliberately ignored shaving for a year or two. He held a clipboard, and he looked up from his notes every few seconds, as if checking off items on a list. Rey figured that this man could be none other than Professor Luke Skywalker.

She approached the professor slowly, and didn’t announce her presence until she was right behind him.

“Are you Professor Skywalker?”

The older man jumped approximately two feet in the air. After calming himself, he turned around to face Rey. “I sure am. You scared the life out of me, kid. Anyway, you must be Rey Johnson.” He stuck out his hand.

“Yes, sir,” she replied. She shook the professor’s hand. “I’m here to help you out with your work this semester.”

“I know,” Professor Skywalker said. “Maz has told me quite a bit about you. You’re quite the budding geologist, from what I’ve heard.”

“Thank you, sir,” Rey said, blushing a bit. Apparently  _ everyone _ was talking about her while she wasn’t around lately. “I’d like to think that I’m doing pretty well in the program.”

“Well, I’m sure you are,” the professor replied with a nurturing smile. “And please, call me Luke. I haven’t officially been a professor in over ten years. There’s no need for formalities.”

_ Well, let’s not make it a full eleven years _ , Rey thought. “Luke,” she said aloud, testing the name on her tongue. “Alright.”

Professor Skywalker laughed. “That’s better.” He put his hand on Rey’s back, pushing her forward. “C’mon,” he continued. “Let me introduce you to the rest of the crew. There aren’t very many of us, but we’re all characters.”

 

***

 

Professor Skywalker led Rey over to the large crater that was dug between the hills. Rey was now able to observe that there were four people working in the hole. Some were digging around with trowels, and others were cleaning and packaging specimens.

“Hey!” Luke yelled downward. “All of you need to come up here and meet our newest recruit!”

Gradually, the team stopped what they were doing and climbed out of the crater. They lined up in front of Professor Skywalker, and one by one Luke introduced them.

“Everyone, this is Rey,” Professor Skywalker said. “She’s a sophomore geology student from Resistance College, and she’s to help us out until her semester ends.”

“Hi Rey,” the team replied in unison.

Luke prompted Rey to approach the first person in the line. He was tall, and had dark hair. “This is Biggs Darklighter,” Luke said. “He’s an old friend and colleague of mine. He’s also the senior geologist on site. If you ever need anything and I’m not around, just ask Biggs.”

“Good to meet you,” Biggs said as he shook Rey’s hand.

Rey moved down the line. The next team member was a younger woman. She was slender, and her long hair was tied up in a bun, and she was very pretty.

“This is Jessika Pava,” Professor Skywalker continued. “She’s a more recent addition to our crew. She’s a geology grad student at one of the colleges out on Dandoran.”

Rey blushed a bit as she shook Jessika’s hand. The grad student smiled at her. “Nice to meet you,” Rey said softly, trying to hide her embarrassment.

Professor Skywalker led Rey to the next person. This man looked like a younger version of Biggs Darklighter; he too had dark hair and eyes, but he was little shorter than Biggs.

“I’m Wedge,” he said before Professor Skywalker had a chance to open his mouth. “Wedge Antilles.” He greeted Rey with a violent handshake.

Professor Skywalker let out a hearty laugh. “Wedge always makes himself heard,” he said. “He’s a lot sometimes, but you two will get along just fine.”

“Hey!” Wedge exclaimed, only pretending to be offended. He let out a laugh to match Luke’s, and he landed a light punch to the professor’s shoulder.

Rey and Luke reached the last person that stood before them. He was extremely tall, looming above the rest of the team. His other distinguishing feature was the long, brown hair that flowed from his head and down towards the small of his back.

“Rey, this is Chew E. Bacca,” Professor Skywalker said. “He doesn’t say much, but he’s the strongest guy we have on the team. We leave all the heavy lifting him. And oh.” His voice took on an air of caution. “Call him Chew E. He doesn’t really like his full name.”

Chew E. just smiled and waved at Rey. He looked pretty intimidating, but Rey could tell that he was sweetheart deep down. She returned the smile and wave.

“Go back to work,” Skywalker said to his team. They returned to the crater. He began to lead Rey away from the main hole, and towards the terraced area of the hill. He pointed up at the two figures who were wandering upon the terrace, far above where he and Rey were standing.

“Those two are Beru and Owen Lars,” he continued. “They’re two old family friends that I hired to kind of keep an eye out on things down below. They make sure that everyone is doing what they’re supposed to be doing, and that no one is in danger.” He looked up towards where Beru and Owen were walking about. “Hey!” he shouted up at them. They looked down and waved; Professor Skywalker waved back. “This is Rey! She’s gonna be helping us out!”

Beru and Owen waved at Rey, and she returned the gesture.

Luke led Rey away from the terrace. “Well, that’s pretty much everyone you need to get familiar with. They’re all pretty low-key guys,” he said. “Why don’t you grab your tools and go on down into the pit? You don’t have to go anything exciting today; just look around down there, and observe what everyone else is doing. I have a feeling that you’ll pick it up pretty quickly.”

“Alright,” Rey said. She took her dig kit out of her backpack when they returned to the tent. “Thank you, Luke.”

“No problem,” Professor Skywalker said. Rey began to descend into the crater, but Luke caught her right before her head disappeared behind the edge. “Rey?”

“Yes?”

“Do you like minerals and crystals?”

“Um, yes. That’s kind of why I decided to work with you this semester. I want to specialize in mineralogy.”

Luke let out a genuine laugh. “Good,” he said. “Cause that’s pretty much all there is to see here.” He smiled at his new pupil before she disappeared behind the side of the gigantic hole.


	13. Saturday, January 26th, 1346, 10:45 AM

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe gives Finn his first flying lesson.

Poe was laying on his bed, reading his favorite aviation magazine,  _ Starships & Speeders _ . It was pretty early for a Saturday morning at Resistance College, but Poe had always been an early riser. Unlike his boyfriend, Poe was almost always up by 9:00 AM, no matter what time he had gone to sleep or how much partying he had done the night before. He felt that if he slept in too late he was wasting the day.

As he flipped through the magazine slowly and attempted to take in all the amazing information and pictures, Poe heard a knock on his bedroom door. He was a little confused; he wasn’t expecting anyone, and he wasn’t being disruptive. Nevertheless, Poe went over to the door and opened it.

Surprisingly, Finn was at the door. Poe became worried; Finn probably wouldn’t be up so early unless something was wrong. 

Poe ushered his boyfriend into the room. “Is everything okay?” he said almost frantically. He guided Finn over to the bed and sat him down. 

Finn looked more puzzled than anything. “Yes, I’m okay,” he replied, almost flattered by Poe’s concern. “Why wouldn’t I be okay?”

“I don’t know,” Poe said, relieved. He sat down on the bed beside Finn. “You’re never up this early. I don’t know why you would be, so I guess I assumed something was wrong.”

Finn laughed. “That’s adorable,” he said sweetly. Poe looked a little less worried, but he was clearly still shaken. Finn rubbed his hand over his boyfriend’s back in an attempt to relax him. “No, nothing is wrong,” he continued. “I just thought that this morning would be a good opportunity to start flying lessons.” He took out the spare set of keys to the X-Wing and dangled them in front of Poe’s face.

Poe perked up immediately. He quickly got to his feet, ready to spring into action. Within a moment he had completely forgotten about his brief panic attack. “Yes! Let’s go!” He practically ran across the room and started putting on his shoes.

Finn laughed again. On the outside he was trying to keep his composure, but on the inside he was jumping around and screaming like an excited schoolboy. He was glad that Poe was as excited as he was.

 

***

 

Poe and Finn reached the hangar and approached the X-Wing. 

“Man, this baby is getting a lot of action lately,” Poe said. “Between your flying lessons and bringing Rey to her special studies, this thing will be out at least twice a week.”

Finn was a bit puzzled. “You’re driving Rey to her special studies?”

“Yeah,” Poe replied. “She didn’t tell you?” Finn shook his head. “Well, on the first day of her thing she called me because she didn’t have a ride. And after I brought her that time, I offered to take her every week. I don’t know. I know she’s your good friend, and she seems really cool and nice. I want to get to know her better.”

Finn beemed. He was so happy that his two best friends were going to become closer. 

By the time Poe was done talking about his newfound friendship with Rey, Finn had already opened up the X-Wing with the spare remote key set.. The stairs descended from the cockpit. Poe was impressed that Finn knew which button to push. He climbed up the stairs first, leaving room for Finn to get into the driver’s seat.

Once they were seated, Poe prompted Finn. “Do you remember where the helmets are?”

Finn had to think for a few seconds, but then he remembered. “They’re under the seats!” he said triumphantly. 

“That’s right,” Poe affirmed with a smile. He and Finn both reached under their seats and removed the helmets.

Since Poe usually drove the X-Wing, his new Resistance College helmet was still under the driver’s seat. Finn pulled it out and started to hand it back to his boyfriend.

“No,” Poe said, pushing his helmet away. “The pilot gets to wear the pilot’s helmet.”

Finn looked back at Poe and flashed him a look of uncertainty. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Poe said. “You’re the pilot now. You should wear the helmet.”

Still unsure, Finn placed the new helmet on his head. When he bought it for Poe, he never thought that he would be wearing it himself. He didn’t even try it on for fun before he gave it to Poe; it just felt wrong. After adjusting his head inside the helmet, Finn pulled the seatbelt across his body. Poe did the same.

“Alright,” Poe said. “Put the keys in the ignition.” Finn did as he was told. “Now turn the key away from you.” Again, Finn followed Poe’s instructions. The X-Wing sprang to life.

Finn jumped back his seat a bit when he felt the engine kick to life underneath him. Poe laughed. “It feels pretty powerful the first time,” he said reassuringly. “Don’t worry. Now, you see that stick to your right?”

“Yep,” Finn said as he put his hand on the knob of the stick.

“That’s the transmission,” Poe said. “Pull that back one notch. That will put the ship in first gear. That’s just for travelling along the ground.”

Finn pulled the transmission and put the ship into first gear. “What do the other gears do?” he asked as he looked at the other gear options along the side of the transmission.

“Good question,” Poe said. “It’s good to know what the ship is going to do before you just do it. Second gear is for takeoff, third gear is for cruising within a planet’s atmosphere, and fourth gear is for cruising out in space. And you see that last gear, labelled ‘HD?’” 

“Yeah?”

“That’s the HyperDrive,” Poe said. “It’s for going at light speed. I barely even use that. There’s some other buttons you also have to push to go into that gear, but I’m not going to tell you them. I don’t want you accidentally shifting into HyperDrive.”

“Alright,” Finn said. HyperDrive sounded really scary, so he didn’t really want to know how to turn it on. 

“You’re in first gear, right?” Poe asked.

“Yeah.”

“Okay, good. Now, there are two pedals on the floor that we use while in first gear. The one on the left is called the ‘brake.’ It’s used for slowing down and stopping. The one on the right is called the ‘accelerator.’ I think that name pretty much speaks for itself. And we only use our right foot when operating the pedals. If you’re using both feet and accidentally press both pedals at the same time, it can be really dangerous. So put your left foot off to the side. When you’re ready, use the accelerator to get out of this parking space. And obviously use the steering wheel to maneuver this thing.”

_ Well THAT’S super intimidating _ , Finn thought, but he did as he was told. He brought his right foot down to the accelerator, but he barely used any force to push it towards the floor. The X-Wing gradually began to move forward. Finn delicately moved the steering wheel and used the accelerator until the ship was out of the parking spot and facing the exit. He brought the X-Wing to brief stop with the brake.

“Good, Finn, good!” Poe exclaimed. “It’ll be easier now that you’ll be able to drive in a straight line. And since you have a straight shot now, you can go a little faster.”

“Alright,” Finn said hesitantly. He used a bit more force on the accelerator this time, which brought the X-Wing out of the hangar at a pretty reasonable speed. The runway was in sight now, so he brought the ship to a stop again.

“Okay,” Poe said from the backseat. “Now, you’re going to position the ship at the starting end of the runway, and then stop. Then you’ll hear some voices in your ear through the helmet earpiece. They’ll tell you what to do.”

Slowly again, Finn drove the ship around to the end of the runway. There weren’t many ships around, so there wasn’t much that he was worried about hitting. He stopped when he reached the starting point.

“Hello,” a voice came from within the helmet. Finn jumped a little at the sudden noise in his ear. “Prepare for takeoff. Ready engines.”

Poe could also hear the instructions through the auxiliary helmet. “Take it completely out of gear, then press the accelerator kinda hard.” Finn did so, and the engine revved underneath him.

“Begin forward motion,” the voice continued.

“Put it back in first gear, and then press the accelerator hard again,” Poe instructed.

The X-Wing began to accelerate at a fantastic rate down the runway. Finn was forced back into his seat. 

“Separate from runway.”

Poe had to shout over the sound of the engines. “Shift into second gear!”

The ship’s wheels were no longer in contact with the runway.

“Takeoff successful,” the voice said over the intercom. “Have a good flight, Dameron.”

Finn blushed. Flight control had assumed that it was Poe flying the X-Wing, so they used his name. It got Finn thinking… Finn Dameron. He liked the sound of that.

Once they were about ten-thousand feet above the surface of Jakku, Poe’s voice came and interrupted Finn’s thoughts. “Put her in third gear. We’re just gonna cruise over the planet today. We’ll practice getting out of the atmosphere another day.” 

Finn shifted the transmission back one more setting. The engine seemed to relax beneath him. 

“You can take your foot off the accelerator,” Poe said. “Since we’re in a cruising gear now, the ship will just kinda move along at a set pace.”

“Cool,” Finn said. It was almost as if the X-Wing had a mind of its own. 

They cruised in silence for a few minutes. Poe was looking out over the surface of Jakku; he hadn’t seen some of the planet before. After a while, he spoke again. “Finn, look outside.”

Finn looked out and saw the wide expanse of desert below. “It’s strangely serene,” he said. He was basically right; the sand was so utterly empty that it was almost comforting.

For a few more minutes, it was quiet again. The couple took turns looking out into the desert. Then, Finn broke the silence. “Thanks for bringing me up here,” he said sweetly.

“You brought yourself up here,” Poe said. “You flew the ship all by yourself. You’ll make a fine pilot one day, Finn.”

“Thank you,” Finn replied. “But I’ll never be as good as you.”

Poe chuckled. “Finn, I’m a fighter pilot. It’s very different, and it’s very dangerous. I would never WANT you to be good enough to be a fighter pilot. What I want is for you to be safe. But you will be a great regular pilot. You will be able to fly yourself from place to place, and that’s a feat in itself.”

There was a pause while Finn digested everything that Poe said. Then came his reply: “I love you, Poe.”

“I love you too, Finn.” The words were beginning to feel familiar on Poe’s tongue, and he smiled. “C’mon. Let’s go home.”


End file.
